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TMI Blog2018 (6) TMI 260X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 4. E/60807/2013 DL/ST/AE/Gr.III/241/08 dated 10/02/2012 4501428/- 1666864/- 2009-10 & 2010-11 5. E/60808/2013 DL/ST/AE/Gr.III/241/08 dated 26/10/2012 15821528/ 12378956/ 2011-12 The service tax has been demanded and confirmed under above-mentioned show cause notices and the order-in-original for different time periods which are mentioned in the above- mentioned table. The demand of service tax is primarily under two categories : (i) service under Club and Association (including the sale of statistical data to the Members of appellant association) ; (ii) under Business Exhibition Services. 2. The learned Advocate appearing for the appellant has pleaded that the Adjudicating Authority has not applied his mind and the submission made by them in their written submissions as well as during the personal hearing has not been taken into consideration. The learned Advocate has tried to bifurcate the period of demand under the category of Club and Association Service into two periods viz. for the period 16/01/2005 to 31/03/2008 and 01/04/2008 and thereafter. It has been argued that an amendment was made into the Finance Act, 1994 under which a new Section 96J has been ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the learned Advocate that the Adjudicating Authority has wrongly held that the amount of the revenue received by the appellant on sharing basis from M/s CII is the revenue from the Business Exhibition Service on which they have not discharged the service tax. The learned Advocate has contended that as per the agreement between the appellant and M/s CII, the later were required to undertake several functions including payment of service tax and to elaborate this point the relevant extract from the MoU between M/s CII and the appellant dated 25th day of May, 2009 is reproduced here under:- (a) To market the Auto Expo to all its 44 members through brochures, emails, telephonic marketing and any other mode of marketing that may be necessary to sell exhibition space to the SIAM members ; (b) CII to collect all charges from SIAM members for the participation in the show along with service tax ; (c) It is agreed that CII can raise bills in its own name directly on SIAM members participating in the show and also otherwise to deal with them directly relating to show matters ; (d) As SIAM members would be deducting TDS on participation fee and would finally issue TDS Certificate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d in the foregoing paras we will like to reproduce the extract from the decision of Hon'ble High Court of Gujarat in the case of Sports Club of Gujarat Ltd. vs. Union of India - 2010 (20) S.T.R. 17 (Guj.), "20. For the applicability of service tax, there should be existence of two sides/entities, viz. transaction as against consideration. In a members-club there is no question of two sides. "Members" and "Club" both are the same entity. One may be called as "principal" when the other may be called as "agent". Therefore, such transaction, in between themselves, cannot be recorded as income, sale or service. 21. By relying upon the bye-laws of the clubs, a ground is sought to be raised that since the clubs also take on lease or hire moveable or immoveable property for its different purposes, they are liable to pay service tax. We have gone through the bye-laws and also the relevant rules and regulations of the Clubs and do not find any provision that the properties and/or the facilities, those are being made available by the members to themselves could be extended to third parties for any consideration whatsoever. 22. The members of the clubs are allowed exclusively to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erate as an estoppel or acquiescence. Therefore, the entire proceedings against the clubs about the applicability of service tax are required to be quashed and set aside. 26. In taxation matters, where a High Court is concerned with the interpretation of an all India statute, it should be a practice and policy that if one High Court has interpreted a provision or section of a taxing statute which is an all India statute and there is no other view in the field, another High Court must ordinarily accept that view in the interest of uniformity and consistency in matter of application of taxing statute so as to avoid the challenge of discrimination in application and administration of tax matters. Such principle has been laid down in Maneklal Chunilal & Sons v. Commissioner of Income Tax - (1953) 24 I.T.R. 375; Commissioner of Income Tax v. Chimanlal J. Dalal & Co. - (1965) 57 I.T.R. 285, Commissioner of Income Tax v. Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd. - (1974) 97 I.T.R. 128 and J.D. Patel v. Union of India - 1975 G.L.R. 1083. We are, therefore, in respectful agreement with the view taken by the Calcutta High Court in the decision referred to in Dalhousie Institute and Saturday club cases (supra)". ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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