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2015 (4) TMI 424 - HC - VAT and Sales TaxLevy of Entertainments & Advertisements Tax - Whether the assessee M/s Sky Media (P) Ltd. Jodhpur, a Multi System Operator (MSO), falls within the definition of `Proprietor' and the charging provision of the Rajasthan Entertainments & Advertisements Act, 1957 and is liable to pay entertainment tax on the satellite signals or electronic TV signals provided to the cable operators, who further transmit the same to the viewers/consumers for entertainment by exhibition of films & videos etc. - Held that:- there is no separate definition of the Multi System Operators like the present assessee, cable operators, sub-cable operators are found in the Rajasthan Entertainment & Advertisement Tax Act, 1957 but equally it is beyond any doubt that the MSO with the nature of work it does of receiving the satellite signals and transmitting the same to the cable operators is nothing but a work of cable operator as defined under the West Bengal Act, which was subject matter of the controversy before the Supreme Court in the case of M/s Purvi Communication (supra) and it would be of great value to quote para 34 and 35 of the said judgment to explain the aforesaid proposition that MSO is nothing but a cable operator as defined in the West Bengal Act read with the provisions of the Cable TV Network Regulations, 1995. Multi System Operator, will clearly fall within the ambit and scope of the definition `Proprietor' read with the charging provision of Section 4AA of the amended law, irrespective of the fact that there is no separate definition of such MSO, cable operator or sub-cable operator in the Rajasthan Act. A closer scrutiny of the definition of `Proprietor', who falls within the tax net under the said law would reveal that even MSO like the present assessee is undoubtedly a person connected with the organization of entertainment. He may or may not be a last person providing such entertainment in the chain to the ultimate subscriber/viewer and there may be one or more agency in between like cable operator or sub-cable operator in the present case. But, it is undoubted that without the transmission of satellite signals or electronic signals by the MSO to the cable operators or sub-cable operators, the ultimate consumer or viewer cannot view the entertainment. Thus, the MSO is undoubtedly an integral part of the chain of persons or agencies or organization providing such entertainment and since the definition of the "Proprietor" clearly covers such an assessee, therefore, it cannot be contended, as has been contended by the assessee, that in the absence of a specific definition in the definition clause of cable operator or Multi System Operator, they would not fall within the tax net. The controvery is squarely covered on all fours by the aforesaid judgments of Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of M/s Purvi Communication (2005 (3) TMI 438 - SUPREME COURT OF INDIA), Indusind Media (2013 (3) TMI 110 - SUPREME COURT) and the amended provisions of the Rajasthan Entertainment & Advertisement Tax Act, 1957 and the orders passed by the assessing authority in the present cases deserve to be upheld while the orders passed by the two higher appellate authorities, namely; Deputy Commissioner (Appeals) and the Rajasthan Tax Board, deserve to be quashed and set aside. - M/s Sky Media Pvt. Ltd. would fall within the scope of charging provision of the Rajasthan Entertainments & Advertisements Tax Act, 1957 and under the retrospectively amended provisions of the Act and the present assessee would fall within the definition of `Proprietor' as defined under Section 3(8) of the Act and is liable to entertainment tax under the charging provision of Section 4AA of the said Act of 1957. - Decided against assessee.
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