TIOL-DDT 2074
28.03.2013
Thursday

WHILE disposing a batch of Writ Petitions filed against recovery proceedings initiated by the Central Excise department during the pendency of stay applications (Draconian Circular 967), the High Court of Karnataka observed:

I am compelled to observe so, regard being had to the fact that the Union of India has failed to set up large number of Tribunals such as CESTAT and if this is done, then there would be no cause for complaint over the non-consideration of the applications for stay, in appeals, by only one Tribunal, presently functioning at Bangalore. This should be an eye opener for Union of India to establish and constitute any number of Tribunals in all the States in the Country.

Will Union of India open its eyes and open new benches of the Tribunal? It seems the Benches at Hyderabad and Kochi are already sanctioned. The previous President was not inclined to open new benches. Let us hope the new President would take this forward.

In the meanwhile, if they can't start new benches of the Tribunal, can't they at least withdraw the much maligned Circular?

Please also see today's Cob(Web) Column.

See 2013-TIOL-235-HC-KAR-CX

Service Tax Return ready in Aces

THE wait is over. The ST 3 Return for the period 1st July - 30th September, 2012 to be filed before 15th April 2013 is now available in a modified format for e-filing on the ACES website.

Good Friday - Relaxation for Prayers

CBEC communicates that a Writ Petition No.2048/2013 has been filed in the Delhi High Court challenging the contents of the letter Dated 15.03.2013. The High Court has directed, amongst other things, that such persons who profess Christian faith and are desirous of either being sanctioned full leave on both days or permission to pray at the Church for a limited duration on either day would be sanctioned leave or permission to leave offices to visit the Church at a short duration, keeping in view that those professing Christian faith would be a miniscule number working in such offices/departments of the Central Government where revenue is generated. In case leave/permission is to be denied, the same would be strictly upon the condition of extreme emergency of duty and reason for the same with reference to the facts would be communicated to the employee concerned. Leave or permission should be approved latest by 10.00AM on March 28, 2013.

CBEC F.No.296/42/2013-CX.9 Dated March 26, 2013

Goods supplied to ASTRA Project exempted from Customs duty

GOVERNMENT has exempted Machinery, equipment, instruments, components, spares, jigs and fixtures, dies, tools, accessories, computer software, raw materials and consumables required for the purpose of Air-to-Air Missile System (Project ASTRA) of the Ministry of Defence. Notification No 39/96 Cus dated 23.07.1996 has been amended accordingly.

This is not a new exemption. It was there since a long time renewed periodically with gaps as per the Board's loss of memory. As of now, the exemption was valid till 28.02.2013 and obviously the Board forgot to extend it and now they have extended it till 31 August 2013, but with effect from 25.03.2013. What about the period from 1.3.2013 to 24.3.2013? Was it not in public interest to exempt the goods during this period?

Please see DDT 1987-21.11.2012, for a similar mess when the exemption notification was last amended.

Notification No. 16/2013-Customs, Dated: March 25, 2013

Similar exemption is given for Central Excise duty also - And Similar Mess

NOTIFICATION No No.64/95-Central Excise, dated the 16th March, 1995 has also been amended. But the description of goods exempted is not similar and it reads “Equipment and stores”.

Notification No. 13/2013- Central Excise, Dated March 25, 2013

Custom House, Chennai to function on 29th, 30th and 31st

CUSTOM House Chennai will function on March 29th, 30th and 31st to enable Importers and Exporters to file documents, pay duty and clear the goods. On all these days, Custom House will be functioning from 9.30 AM to 6.00 PM like any other working day. The extension counters of Indian Bank and State Bank of India in the Custom House premises and Air Cargo Complex, Meenambakkam, Chennai will also be kept open for longer hours on 29th, 30th and 31st March 2013 to enable payment of Customs duties i.e. payment facility is available through ICEGATE from 04.00 AM to 08.00 PM on all days including Sundays.

Press release by the Chief Commissioner of Customs, Chennai

MCA - Relaxation of additional fee on forms extended

IN continuation of the MCA's Circular No 03/2013 dated 08/02/2013 on Relaxation of additional fees and extension of last date in filing of various forms with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, the time limit for filing and relaxation of additional fee on forms has since been extended till 31/03/2013.

MCA circular No 07/2013, Dated: March 20, 2013

Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 1975 amended

THE Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 1975 have been amended as under:

(i) in rule 2, in clause (b), for sub clause (x), the following sub-clause shall be substituted, namely:-

¶(x) any amount raised by the issue of bonds or debentures secured by the mortgage of arty fixed assets referred to in Schedule VI of the Act excluding intangible assets of the company or with an option to convert them into shares in the company:

Provided that in the case of such bonds or debentures secured by the mortgage of any fixed assets referred to in Schedule VI of the Act excluding intangible assets the amount of such bonds or debentures shall not exceed the market value of such fixed assets¶;

(ii) for rule 11A, the following rule shall be substituted, namely:-

¶The Regional Director or Registrar of Companies or any other officer of the Central Government shall be authorised to make complaints under sub-section (2) of section 58AAA of the Act.¶.

MCA Notification No 13/2013 Dated March 21, 2013.

Training courses for end users conducted by Manufacturer - not liable to ST under ‘Commercial Training & Coaching Service'

THE applicants are the manufacturers of dynamometers. They are organising training programme for their customers to educate them as to how to use their product. For this training programme, the applicants are charging some amount from the customers towards reimbursement of expenses incurred on the training programme.

Revenue is of the view that service tax is payable by the appellant under the category of ‘Commercial training and Coaching Service'.

A demand for recovery of ST of Rs.24,880/- was issued and the same was confirmed along with equivalent penalty and interest and which order was upheld by the Commissioner(A).

The Bench observed -

“3. Prima facie, I am of the view that as this service is not provided by the applicant as a Commercial training and Coaching Institute and moreover the training programme is not open to everybody, the said service is limited to the customers only and customers are reimbursing the expenses incurred by the applicant for training programme, the applicants required to pay service tax on the said service. Therefore, I waive the requirement of pre-deposit of service tax, interest and penalty and stay recovery thereof during the pendency of the appeal.”

(See 2013-TIOL-521-CESTAT-MUM)

DDT Cartoon

Jurisprudentiol - Monday's cases

Service Tax

Work order given by appellant to transporters clearly indicates that it is for loading and transportation of clinkers and rate for transportation is far higher than that for loading - loading and unloading is incidental and, therefore, predominant and essential nature of service is transportation and not ‘Cargo Handling' - appellant to discharge ST under GTA services - Pre-deposit ordered: CESTAT

THE appellant are manufacturers of cement and the raw material is clinker, which is received by them by sea through ships. The said clinker is unloaded from the ships at the jetty and thereafter transported to their factory by availing services of transporters, namely, New Konkan Transport and M/s. Yashashree Transport.

Since the appellant did not discharge service tax liability under the category of GTA service a show cause notice dated 11/03/2010 was issued demanding service tax of Rs. 13,51,518/- along with interest.

Central Excise

Refund of excess interest - from a reading of s.12B of the CEA, 1944, it is clear that bar of unjust enrichment is applicable to duty only and not for interest - law does not provide any presumption of passing incidence of interest on the buyers - Appeal allowed: CESTAT

THE appellant before the CESTAT submits - that the amount of excess interest paid had shown in Balance sheet as receivable and the appellant has paid Income Tax also on the said excess amount of interest receivable and the onus is on the department to prove that what appellant is saying is incorrect. As the appellant has discharged their onus by proving that the burden of excess interest has not been passed on to the customers on the basis of entry shown in the Balance sheet, the appellant is entitled for refund.

See our Columns Monday for the judgements

Until Monday with more DDT

HAVE A NICE LONG WEEKEND

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