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2018 (7) TMI 433 - AT - Service TaxNon-payment of Service Tax within due date - invocation of Section 73(1) of the Finance Act, 1994 - intent to evade present or not? - Whether the appellants can be extended the beneficial provision of Section 80 of the Act so as to waive the penalties imposed on them under Section 76 and 77 ibid? - Held that:- Once it has been held that service tax has not been paid on account of fraud or collusion or wilful misstatement or suppression of facts, etc., with intention to evade payment of service tax, the provisions of Section 73(3) of the Act would hold sway - in the case of the appellant and, in fact, as per the provisions of that Section, on the basis of tax ascertained by the Department Officer, if the amount is paid up by the appellant before service of a notice on him, there shall not be served any notice under Sub-section 1 of Section 73 ibid. The appellant has paid up the service tax belatedly before issuance of SCN. The interest which is in the nature of compensation for the delay in payment, was also paid after issuance of SCN and much before issuing the Order-in-Original - The conduct of the appellant in paying up service tax and interest, and the categoric finding of the Commissioner that there is no intention to evade tax, persuades us to hold that appellant has established reasonable cause for invoking Section 80 of the Act ibid - penalty u/s 76 set aside. Appeal allowed in part.
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