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TMI Blog2008 (2) TMI 238X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th interest under Section 75, on goods transport service received by the respondent during the period July 16, 1997 to June 1, 1998. The notice stated that the liability for the said period was Rs. 16,87,327/- of which the respondent had paid Rs. 4,28,587/-. The notice also proposed to impose penalty under Section 76 for failure to pay service tax and under Section 77 for non-filing of return. (2) The Joint Commissioner by Order-in-Original dated October 23, 2003 confirmed the demand under Section 68, directed payment of interest under Section 75 and imposed penalty under Section 76 for non-payment of tax @ Rs. 200/- per day (upto a maximum of the unpaid amount of service tax) and penalty of Rs. 1000/- under Section 77 for non-filing of r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cation bearing No. 41/97-ST dated November 5, 1997, the levy was made effective from November 16, 1997. 5. By Notification bearing No. 42/97-ST dated November 5, 1997, Rule 2(1)(d)(xvii) of the Service Tax Rules, 1944 ("the Rules") was made treating the customer of the goods transport operator as the person responsible for collecting the service tax. 1998 1. By notification bearing No. 49/98-ST dated June 2, 1998, exemption was granted in respect of goods transport service. 2 By the Finance (No.2) Act 1998, the provisions in the Act relating to levy of service tax on goods transport service were done away with. July 27, 1999 1. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in Laghu Udyog Bharati v. Union of India -2006 (2) S.T.R. 276 (S.C.) = 1999 (1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... with effect from May 14, 2003 providing for furnishing of return by the customer of a goods transport operator for the period November 16, 1997 to June 2, 1998 within a period of six months from May 13, 2003 failing which the interest and penal consequences as provided in the Act were to follow. 2004 1. Section 73 was substituted by the Finance (No.2) Act, 2004 with effect from September 10, 2004. Prior to the said substitution, it applied to a case where return was to be filed under Section 70 but not where it was to be filed under Section 71A. The substituted section also covered a Section 71A read with Rule 7A situation. March 17, 2005 1. The Hon'ble Supreme Court upheld the amendments made by Finance Acts, 2000 and 2003 in the c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 61 (Tribunal) which has been upheld by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Commissioner of Central Excise v. L.H. Sugar Factories Ltd. - 2006 (3) S.T.R. 715 (Tribunal) = 2005 (187) E.L.T. 5 (S.C.). (5) The contention that a show cause notice under Section 73 for recovery of tax with interest and penalty issued prior to the amendments made by the Finance Act, 2003 is wholly inadequate and inapplicable to the contingency that arose by reason of the 2003 amendments and the demand pursuant thereto cannot be sustained finds support from the decision of this Hon'ble Tribunal in Commissioner of Central Excise v. Jaiswal Equipment and Holdings P. Ltd. - 2007 (7) S.T.R. 665. (6) There being no valid show cause notice, no demand for tax, interes ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t's Appeal. 5. While rejecting the Department's Appeal following the decision of the Tribunal in the case of L.H. Sugar (cited supra) as upheld by Hon'ble Supreme Court, we respectfully quote from a recent decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Assistant Director of Mines & Geology v. Deeccan Cements Ltd. - 2008 (9) S.T.R. 449 (S.C.) = 2008 (222) E.L.T. 321 (S.C.) in which it has been observed in para 7 that "7. The matter can be looked from another angle. Supposing somebody has paid the taxes and in other words there has been collection of the amount levied. There may be another person who may not have paid it. The latter person cannot be placed at a better footing than the former one." 6. The Government m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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