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Showing contexts for: data access in Ce & Cgst Lucknow vs U P Electronics Corporation Ltd on 13 November, 2025Matching Fragments
4.4 The basic question which is for consideration in the present case is whether the Service Tax will be leviable on these 03 activities. The major portion of the demand has been made in respect of 'Commercial Coaching & Training Services' and Online Information, Data Access and Retrieval Services. In respect of 'Commercial Coaching & Training Services' impugned order records as follows:-
"On careful consideration of the above submissions I find that the noticee has not been able to disclose under what law "A" level and "O" level diploma certificate is recognized. The noticee has submitted that their institute in Agra is accredited by the DOEACC society to conduct computer training to students which enable them to appear in the "A"
"During the provision of such services no data or information online or otherwise are accessed or retrieved by the clients. Thus, it is beyond any doubt that such activities can never be classified as 'online data access & retrieval service'. In this regard, it may be pointed out that the noticee has duly discharged the service tax liability on to AMC charges received during the relevant period 01.04.2006 to 31.03.2010. Further, in respect of networking/electrical charge the noticee w.e.f. 16.05.2008 the noticee is duly discharging its service tax liability under the category of "Management, Maintenance & repair Service. As management of the infrastructure & networking requirement of the clients (government department) and maintenance thereafter is expressly covered under the category of "management, Maintenance & repair Service".
I am not convinced with the submission of the noticee that the e tender customization services are not at all taxable and website development and AMC/ Networking services provided by the noticee are taxable only w.e.f 16.05.08 and Service Tax Appeal No.51761 & 50699 of 2015 by any reckoning none of them are taxable under "Online Data Access & Retrieval Service'.
Having gone through the submissions carefully I find that the noticee has distinguished their activities from a Internet Service Provider (ISP) or a dot com company but they have not been able to establish that their e tender customization activity will not fall in the category of service in relation to on-line information andatabase access or retrieval or both.
57. The Terms and Conditions of online booking facility do not mention that the essence of the contract is for accessing or retrieving any information or data. In fact, the terms are restricted to the facility of online booking. An arrangement which is predominantly for OIDAR would have provisions clearly indicative of the nature of data/information that is permitted to be accessed or retrieved, obligations pertaining to copyright violations, reproductions, replications, restrictions and several other covenants through which the data and information is either sought to be protected or controlled. Such an arrangement would also contain a term that on payment of fee, the user Service Tax Appeal No.51761 & 50699 of 2015 shall have limited or unlimited rights to retrieve or access data/information making it abundantly clear as to what the dominant intention of the contract is. As against this, the Terms and Conditions of the contract involved in the present appeals relating to online booking arrangement make no such averments or declarations and instead are restricted to the grant of online booking facility and nothing more.