Customs, Excise and Gold Tribunal - Bangalore
Adage Outdoor Advertising (P) Ltd. vs The Commissioner Of Customs And Central ... on 20 June, 2007
Equivalent citations: [2007]11STJ267(CESTAT-BANGALORE), [2008]12STT118
ORDER S.L. Peeran, Member (J)
1. The applicant is seeking waiver of pre-deposit of duty of Rs. 12,48,819/-. The Revenue proceeded against the appellants demanding Service Tax in respect of the activity of advertising agencies said to have been carried out by them. The appellants contested the case and submitted that they had entered into Agreement with several advertising agencies and had been renting out the hoardings and were collecting rents. Advertising charges were collected by those agencies and the Service Tax liability fell on them. The Assistant Commissioner accepted their pleas and dropped the proceedings. However, the Commissioner has confirmed the demands on various grounds.
2. The learned Counsel submits that the grounds taken by the Commissioner was never taken up in the Show Cause Notice and the Show Cause Notice merely proceeded on the basis of the Income Tax Returns, Balance Sheet, and ST-3 Returns. All the grounds discussed by the Commissioner were not part of the Show Cause Notice. He submits that even otherwise, they have not received any advertisement charges. They have received only rentals and the Service Tax was required to have been collected from the advertising agencies.
3. The learned JDR submits that the Commissioner has merely amplified the allegations and they are not new ones on new grounds. The details have been taken only from the Returns.
4. We have carefully considered the submissions. Prima facie, the appellants have shown that they have collected rentals on hoardings. The invoices which have been relied by the Commissioner also shows the appellants having received rentals. The Commissioner has discussed various points for confirming the Service Tax which was not explicitly brought out in the Show Cause Notice. In view of the submissions made and the judgments relied by the appellant's counsel, the stay application is allowed granting waiver of pre-deposit and staying its recovery. Commissioner to file his parawise comments in the matter. Appeal to come up in its turn. There shall be no recovery till the disposal of the appeal.
(Pronounced and dictated in open Court)