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2023 (2) TMI 832 - HC - Service TaxInvocation of Extended period of limitation - no intent to evade payment of service tax - whether there is any error apparent on the face of the record to review the judgment? - HELD THAT:- Admittedly, Service Tax was paid by the individual branches till 31.03.2007 and from 01.04.2007, centralised registration was taken. It is an admitted fact that the assessee has not fully disclosed the value of taxable service for the period from 10.09.2004 to 31.07.2007 in the ST 3 Returns. The case of the assessee is that it is due to system failure that the entire amount was not paid. The intelligence report points out that the short levy was from 10.09.2004 to 31.07.2007, and only on a reference by the department after the intelligence report on 02.08.2007, the bank had remitted the differential amounts. The period from 2004 to 2007, around three years, the bank cannot contend that due to system failure, they were not able to remit the Service Tax - the argument of the review petitioner that, there is no finding that there has been suppression of any information and not intended to evade payment of Service Tax does not hold good. Another ground raised by the review petitioner is that there has been a mistake in paragraph 19 of the judgment, only when the department issued a show cause notice, the bank remitted the amount of tax. The said contention is valid for the fact that going by the order in the original as well as the show cause notice, it can be seen that the intelligence report was on 02.08.2007 and the amounts were paid on 22.08.2007, 16.11.2007, 07.12.2007, and 12.12.2007 and the show cause notice was issued on 03.09.2008. Therefore, the statement that the remittance was only after the show cause notice is an error of fact in the narration and needs to be reviewed and it is held that the payment was before the show cause notice, however after the intelligence report on 02.08.2007. When the correct figures are not brought to the notice of the department and when the suppression is unearthed through an intelligence report, the failure of the bank in remitting the amounts thereafter i.e., nearly three years can be brought under the words ‘wilful suppression’. The time for which default occasioned is equally important. Therefore, there is no error apparent on the face of the record, and also there are no grounds to review the judgment, therefore the review petition stands disposed of.
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