2018 (4) TMI 1321 - AT - Service Tax

Commercial or industrial construction services - Repair of roads - Held that - management and maintenance and repair services has been defined in Clause (64) of Section 65 of the Finance Act, 1994. In the said definition, maintenance or management of immovable property including roads and toll plaza had also been included - there was no question of payment of service tax in respect of management, maintenance or repair of roads as per Section 97 of the Finance Act, 1994 - appeal dismissed - decided against Revenue.

Summary

Issues:
Service tax liability for repair of roads under commercial or industrial construction services.

Analysis:
The appeal was filed against the Order-in-Appeal passed by the Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals), Kolkata, demanding service tax for the repair of roads. The Commissioner held that services related to roads fall under the category of commercial or industrial construction services and are excluded from service tax payment as per Clause 25 (b) of Section 65 of the Finance Act, 1994. The Revenue challenged this decision, leading to the present appeal.

During the hearing, only the Revenue's representative appeared, while no one represented the Respondent. After reviewing the facts, the Tribunal concluded that there was no service tax liability for the management, maintenance, or repair of roads under Section 97 of the Finance Act, 1994. The definition of maintenance or management services under Clause (64) of Section 65 includes immovable property like roads and toll plazas. Therefore, the Tribunal found no grounds to overturn the impugned order, which was upheld based on the reasons provided therein.

As a result of the analysis, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal filed by the Revenue, thereby affirming the impugned order. The Cross Objection was also disposed of in the same judgment. The decision was dictated and pronounced in an open court session, bringing the legal proceedings to a conclusion.