TMI Blog2018 (3) TMI 115X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... orld. They are by using these GDS/CRS for booking tickets, receiving incentives from the said companies for every segment booked by them. Appellants have given reasonable explanation for the failure to discharge the service tax, the imposition of penalties is unwarranted. Appeal allowed in part. - ST/534/2010, ST/535/2010, ST/569/2010, ST/490/2010 - Final Order Nos. 40506-40509 / 2018 - Dated:- 27-2-2018 - Ms. Sulekha Beevi C.S., Member ( Judicial ) And Shri Madhu Mohan Damodhar, Member ( Technical ) Ms. Radhika Chandrasekar, Shri T.Ramesh and Ms. Cynduja Crishnan Advocates for the Appellants Shri K.P. Muralidharan, AC (AR) and Shri S.Govindarajan, AC (AR) for the Respondent ORDER Per Bench The issue posing fo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for booking the tickets for which they receive incentive from Amadeus for using their software. The said amount is only an incentive and not a consideration for providing services. While using the software, there is no service provider service recipient relationship and therefore the incentive received cannot be subject to levy of service tax. She submitted that by default the software has to be used by the air travel agent for booking the tickets on behalf of the customers. In addition, ld. counsel submitted that the period involved is partly hit by limitation. The appellants had no intention to suppress facts or evade payment of service tax. They were under bona fide belief that the said amount received as incentive for use of the centra ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... accessories and software to the travel agents at their premises. These computers are connected worldwide to the GDS/CRS, which linked to ticket sales offices of various airlines, hotels and car rental agencies spread across the world. They are by using these GDS/CRS for booking tickets, receiving incentives from the said companies for every segment booked by them. Hence, the service provided by the assessee-appellants has rightly been covered under the heading Business Auxiliary Service as defined under Section 65(19) of the Finance Act, 1994. Thus, we are of the view that the assessee-appellants being providing Tour Operator s Service , the commission received by them is for Business Auxiliary Service under Section 73(1) of the Finance Ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on for the failure to discharge the service tax, we are of the considered opinion that the imposition of penalties is unwarranted. The appellants were under bona fide belief that the incentive received for using the CRS software is not leviable to service tax. Further, by default they have to use the said software for booking the tickets. Therefore, we set aside the penalties imposed under Sections 76, 77 and 78 of the Finance Act, 1994 as applicable in all these appeals. 10. In the result, the impugned orders are modified to the extent of setting aside the penalties imposed without disturbing the demand of service tax or the interest thereon. Appeals are partly allowed in the above terms. ( Operative portion of the order was pronounc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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