9911796707
TMI Blog2006 (8) TMI 12X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... vailing the services of the appellant for their accounting/ ledger maintenance work. The appellants had not paid Service Tax on the amount received from M/s. MESCOM for the above said services rendered. Show Cause Notice was issued to demand the Service Tax along with interest and also proposed to impose penalty. The adjudicating authority, vide impugned order held that the service provided by the appellants falls under the category of "Practicing Chartered Accountant" and confirmed and demanded Service Tax of Rs. 1,65,398/- along with interest and imposed penalty of Its. 100/- per day under Section 76 and Rs. 1,65,398/- under Section 78 of the Finance Act, 1994. Aggrieved by the impugned order, the appellant have filed this appeal infer ai ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... paration and issue of disconnection lists to field staff and preparation of union M/S and consolidated DCB statements. The confirmation has been done on the ground that these are taxable services of accounting provided by a practicing chartered accountant in his professional capacity and Notification No. 59/98-ST. dated 16-10-1998 includes such a service of accounting for attracting levy of Service Tax on professional services of a practicing chartered accountant. 7. The appellant on the other hand contended that the services provided to M/s. MESCOM were not provided by him in his professional capacity as a practicing chartered accountant and that the service actually done was limited to maintaining ledger accounts of billing related acti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... contract envisages payment to appellant on the basis of quantity of billing work attended and not on the basis of lump sum fees for attending accounts. The contract also has penalty clause and provision for the appellant to make a security deposit. It is therefore clear that, the relationship between the appellant and M/s. MESCOM is not that of a practicing chartered accountant and a client but that of an agent and his principal. The service so provided therefore does not fit into the description of taxable service in terms of Section 65[105] [s]. 10. 1 further observe that the work allotted to appellant was capable of being allotted to persons other than a chartered accountant which implies that the work is not one requiring hiring of a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s rendered by a practicing chartered accountant were not subject to Service Tax unless they figured in the list of taxable services appearing in Notification No. 59/1998-S.T. In the present case the relevant service is that of accounting and auditing appearing at SI. No. [i] of list of taxable services of Notification No. 59/1998. 14. The appellant has contested with some force that services rendered by him was that of book keeping/ledger maintenance for area specified in the contract and not of professional accounting by a chartered accountant which has a different scope and meaning. 15. I find from the written submission and extracts from a text book on Accountancy by B.S. Raman, furnished at the time of personal hearing, by other app ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or ultimately drawing a balance sheet, for M/s. MESCOM. Ledger maintenance per se is not a taxable service of accounting done by chartered accountant in his professional capacity. 16. It is therefore clear from the scope of contract that the appellant actually provided services of ledger maintenance, by way of deputing manpower, as per plans and specification already determined for transactions limited to the area of billing, recoveries, etc. and generated relevant MIS and DCB statement. These statements and reports do not amount to a balance sheet for M/s. MESCOM. I therefore come to a conclusion that services provided by the appellant to M/s. MESCOM do not amount to a professional service of accounting provided by a practicing chartered ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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