2010 (4) TMI 509

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..... identical issue being decided in respect of very same assessee in its favour by Tribunal, impugned order was to be set aside and appeal was to be allowed.
M.V. RAVINDRAN, JUDICIAL MEMBER AND B.S.V. MURTHY, TECHNICAL MEMBER M.S. Nagaraja for the Appellant. U. Raja Ram for the Respondent. ORDER M.V. Ravindran, Judicial Member - These appeals are filed by the appellants against the Order-in-Original Nos. 03/2008 and 05/2008 both dated 18-3-2008. 2. Since the issue involved in all these appeals is the same, they are being disposed of by a common order. 3. The issue involved in all these appeals is that the appellants had not included the freight charges paid to the transporters claimed to be individuals for internal movement of the mi .....

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..... efully considered the submissions made at length by both sides and perused the records. On perusal of the records, we find that the issue involved in this case is regarding the service tax liability on the amount of freight charges paid by the appellants herein to the truck owners and whether they are eligible for exemption, abatement from the so-called amount paid by them. The main argument of the assessees is that the trucks, which were used by them were not Goods Transport Agency but they were truck owners and truck operators and will not get covered under the taxable services vide "Transport of Goods by Road - Goods Transport Agency". We find that in an identical issue in respect of both the assessee appellants, appeals were disposed of .....

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..... o which the public have a right of access". If the public have no right of access to any place which is not a road, street, way or thoroughfare it will not be a public place. . . .' 10. We find that in the above judgment, their Lordships interpreted provisions of Indian Motor Vehicles Taxation Act. The Apex Court held that the expression 'road' appearing in a regulatory act like the one they had considered, could connote only a public road in view of the definition to 'public place' appearing in that act. We find that the ratio of the said judgment rendered when the Apex Court examined provisions of Bihar and Orissa Motor Vehicles Taxation Act does not apply to read the provisions of the Finance Act, 1994. We reject this plea of BIOL. 11 .....

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