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2020 (11) TMI 798 - HC - Service TaxWorks Contract Services - business of construction of buildings and civil structures for last several decades - It is the case of the petitioner that, services rendered by the petitioner were actually in the nature of ‘Works Contract’ because petitioner entered into a contract with its client, wherein, transfer of property in goods involved in execution of such contract was leviable to tax - period from October, 2005 to March, 2006 - HELD THAT:- It emerges on record that the petitioner no.1 was rendering services classifiable as ‘works contract’. This fact has neither been disputed by the Commissioner nor by the Tribunal. That only because the petitioner no.1 registered itself for the service tax under the head of ‘commercial / industrial construction services’, the petitioner cannot be fasten its liability to pay service tax on the services rendered by it as ‘work contract’ services. W.e.f. 01.06.2007 by entering (zzzza) in subsection 105 of Section 65 of the Act,1994 was introduced for the first time by the Finance Act, 2007 to cover the person as taxable person in relation to the execution of the works contract in respect of roads, airports, railways, transport terminals, bridges, tunnels and dams. The Apex Court in GANNON DUNKERLEY & CO. VERSUS STATE OF RAJASTHAN & LARSEN & TOUBRO LTD. & UNION OF INDIA [1992 (11) TMI 254 - SUPREME COURT] was of the opinion that the service tax charging Section itself must lay down with specificity that the levy of the service tax can only be on works contracts, and the measure of tax only be on that portion of works contracts which contain a service element which is to be derived from the gross amount charged for the works contract less the value of the property in goods transferred in the execution of the works contract. In such circumstances, the Apex Court held that when the legislature has introduced the concept of service tax on indivisible works contracts then such contracts were never intended to the subject matter of the service tax, and therefore, such contracts, not being exempt under the Finance Act, 1994, cannot be said to fall within its tentacles, as which was never the intention of Parliament. The Apex Court, therefore, held that the levy of service tax on works contract was non-existent prior to 01.06.2007. The contention raised on behalf of the respondents that as the petitioner had voluntarily registered under the head of ‘commercial /industrial construction services’, the petitioner is liable to pay service tax, is not tenable as the petitioner cannot be held to be liable to pay service tax prior to 01.06.2007, where, it is not in dispute that the petitioner was rendering ‘works contract service’. Petition allowed.
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