2014 (5) TMI 951 - AT - Service Tax

Waiver of pre deposit - Demand of service tax - Storage and Warehousing Services - Held that - In the applicant s own case, Bench waived predeposit of penalty and interest after taking into consideration the deposit of entire amount of tax. In that case, the applicant deposited entire amount of tax - facts in the other case are identical to the present case and therefore following the Tribunal s decision 2014 (1) TMI 143 - CESTAT BANGALORE - Stay granted.

Summary

Issues:
Waiver of predeposit of tax, interpretation of 'storage and warehousing services', applicability of previous Tribunal decisions.

Analysis:
The applicant sought waiver of predeposit of tax amounting to Rs.1,83,860/- along with interest and penalty for the period April 04 to March 10. The applicant, a supplier of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG), argued that the tax demand under 'storage and warehousing services' category was incorrect as they provided storage tanks known as 'bullets' on lease rentals at the customer's premises. The counsel relied on previous Tribunal decisions in their favor and highlighted the payment of VAT on the lease rentals. On the other hand, the Revenue contended that the services provided by the applicant fell within the tax net as per the definition of 'storage and warehousing services'. The Revenue also referenced a Supreme Court decision to support their argument that payment of VAT did not exempt the applicant from the tax liability.

Upon reviewing the submissions from both parties and the records, the Tribunal noted that in the applicant's previous case, the entire tax amount had been deposited, leading to the waiver of predeposit of penalty and interest. The Tribunal also considered the previous stay orders where unconditional stays were granted in the applicant's favor. The Tribunal emphasized that the activities of providing storage tanks did not entirely align with 'warehousing and Storage Services' as there was no evidence of oversight on the tanks' operations at the customer's premises. Consequently, the Tribunal decided to waive the predeposit of tax, interest, and penalty for the present case, following the precedent set by previous Tribunal decisions in the applicant's favor. The Tribunal allowed the stay application, thereby halting the recovery of the tax amount until the appeal's disposal.

In conclusion, the Tribunal granted the applicant's request for waiver of predeposit of tax, interest, and penalty based on the similarity of facts with previous cases where the Tribunal had ruled in the applicant's favor. The decision was in line with the interpretation of the nature of services provided by the applicant and the applicability of previous Tribunal judgments in similar cases.