2018 (12) TMI 1036

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..... te pertains to the period from July 2003 to March 2007. 2.1 Briefly stated, the appellant is a partnership firm engaged in rendering 'Real Estate Agent Services' and is also registered with the Service Tax Department. During the course of Audit conducted by the Service Tax Commissionerate, it was ascertained that the appellant had entered into a sale agreement with M/s. The Karthikeyapuram Co-operative Building Society Ltd., Chennai ('Society' for short). It appeared that the developmental activities of land viz., laying of roads, canals, drainage, erection of electricity poles, etc., along with obtaining approval from the local panchayat and CMDA, would fall within the purview of Real Estate Agents Services. Further, from scrutiny of the .....

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..... mmission as a Real Estate Agent. He submitted that the demand on the developmental charges was unsustainable in as much as the same were incurred for making the plots saleable and marketable; that the said expenses/charges are a part of sale consideration and hence, service tax cannot be demanded with respect to the same. He contended that the entire transaction is sale and purchase of land and that the allegation in the Show Cause Notice vivisecting the entire transaction for the purpose of demand of service tax is not proper; that the documents involved evidenced the appellant as a seller of the land involved to the Co-operative Society without having rendered any service to third parties. 4.2 He also stated that the developmental activi .....

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..... d the seller of the housing plots to the members of the Co-operative society and had only received the sale consideration for the same without receiving any commission as Real Estate Agent thereof. Moreover, the developmental activities carried out by them would only be intended to fetch higher price for land and in any case, did not involve services to third parties. In any case, the appellant has sold the lands to the Co-operative Society at the rate of Rs. 136.36 per sqft. the same being the fixed rate of land by the statutory body. It is not the case of the Revenue that there was any extra payment/receipt as commission, which is not booked or that there was any cash transaction (on-money) involved over and above the booked amount. There .....

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