Federation Of Hotels And Restaurants ... vs Union Of India And Ors on 12 August, 2016
56. The Supreme Court applied pith and substance doctrine and concluded
that "the manner of service provided assumes predominance over the
providing of food in such situations which is a definite indicator of the
supremacy of the service aspect." For good measure the Supreme Court
held: "The concept of catering admittedly includes the concept of rendering
service. The fact that tax on the sale of the goods involved in the said service
can be levied does not mean that a service tax cannot be levied on the
service aspect of catering." What the decision therefore does is to highlight
the possibility of splitting up of the composite transaction into the provision
of service element and the supply of food. The Respondents are justified in
contending that as far as the interpretation of Article 366 (29A) (f) of the
Constitution is concerned, the decision in Tamil Nadu Kalyana Mandapam
Association v. Union of India (supra) fully supports their stand.