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March 2012

(2012) 25 STR 122 (P&H) — Punjab Ex- Servicemen Corporation v. Union of India.

By Puloma Dalal, Jayesh Gogri
Chartered Accountants
Reading Time 2 mins
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Appellant is a security agency service provider — Refused to pay tax on the ground that profit is not the motive behind the business – respondent disagreed and contended that service tax would be payable — Absence of profit motive was not a valid reason for non-payment.

Facts:
The appellant a statutory corporation under the provisions of the Punjab Ex-Servicemen Act, 1978 is providing Security Agency Service. Accordingly, the appellant contended that it was not liable to pay service tax as there was no profit motive to carry on the business. Further, since the notice was not sent within 1 year, dispute was also raised on limitation ground. The Revenue contended that service tax was payable as absence of profit motive is not a determinant factor for imposition of liability.

Held:
U/s. 65(94) service provider should be engaged in the business rendering specified service. There is no warrant for reading therein requirement of profit motive. Applicability of limitation law — Statutes of limitation are retrospective in so far as they apply to all legal proceedings brought after their operation for enforcing causes of action accrued earlier — But they neither have the effect of reviving a right of action which is already barred on the date of their coming into operation nor do they have the effect of extinguishing a right of action subsisting on that date — Assessee’s appeal is dismissed.

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