2011 (11) TMI 260 - AT - Service Tax

Dismissal of appeal by the Commissioner (Appeals) for non-compliance of stay order - assessee deposited service tax but failed to pay interest Held that - The amount of service tax paid by the appellant is sufficient to comply with the Section 35F of CEA, 1944 read with Section 83 of the Finance Act, 1994. Now the appellant has paid the interest also. Therefore, they have complied with the stay order passed by the Commissioner. The matter is remanded back to pass an order on merit without insisting for further deposits.

Summary

Issues involved:
Non-compliance of stay order leading to appeal dismissal

Analysis:
The appellant filed an appeal along with a stay application after their appeal was dismissed by the Commissioner for non-compliance of the stay order. The Tribunal noted that the issue was narrow, and after granting a waiver of pre-deposit of penalties, they proceeded with the final disposal of the appeal. The impugned order revealed that although the appellant had deposited the service tax, they had failed to pay the interest as directed by the Commissioner. Consequently, the Commissioner (Appeals) dismissed the appeal for non-compliance with the stay order. However, the Tribunal found that the appellant had paid the interest subsequently, fulfilling the conditions of the stay order. Therefore, the Tribunal remanded the matter back to the Commissioner (Appeals) to pass an order on merit without requiring further deposits. The appeal and stay application were disposed of accordingly.