2008 (5) TMI 126 - AT - Service Tax

Revenue denied credit on input services viz. Maintenance and Repair Services, Telephone Services, Mandap Keeper Services, Air Travel Agent Services, Rent-a-Cab Services and Supervision Charges on the ground that applicant filed to given any evidence of their use evidences will be looked into at the time of final hearing. Therefore, Applicants failed to make out a prima facie case for waiver of pre-deposit of entire amount of tax

Summary

Issues involved: Application for waiver of pre-deposit of tax on denied credit for input services including Maintenance and Repair Services, Telephone Services, Rent-a-Cab Services, and others.

Analysis:
1. Common Issue and Applications: The judgment addresses the common issue in two applications seeking waiver of pre-deposit of tax amounting to Rs. 2,55,909/- and Rs. 1,24,559/- respectively. The Revenue had denied credit on various input services such as Maintenance and Repair Services, Telephone Services, Rent-a-Cab Services, among others.

2. Denial of Credit: The Commissioner denied credit primarily on Rent-a-Cab Services, Maintenance and Repair Services, and Telephone Services. The Commissioner noted the lack of evidence provided by the Applicants regarding the repair of equipment related to production for Maintenance and Repair Services. Similarly, for Rent-a-Cab Services, evidence of official use by the Applicants or for product marketing was not submitted.

3. Submissions and Evidence: The Applicants' advocate contended that evidence was indeed presented before the Commissioner, emphasizing the distribution of Service Tax Credit based on challans. However, the denial of credit was mainly due to the lack of evidence, which was deemed crucial for a prima facie case for waiver of pre-deposit of the entire tax amount.

4. Decision and Pre-Deposit: The Tribunal directed the Applicants to pre-deposit Rs. 50,000/- for Jaypee Rewa Plant and Rs. 30,000/- for Jaypee Bela Plant within six weeks. Upon compliance with this directive, the balance tax amount was waived until the appeals' disposal. The deadline for compliance was set for 10th July 2008, with the order being dictated and pronounced on 22nd May 2008.

This detailed analysis of the judgment highlights the key issues, arguments presented, evidence considered, and the final decision rendered by the Tribunal regarding the waiver of pre-deposit of tax on the denied input services credit.