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Electricity Call Centre, Customer Service Centre, Computerised Collection Centre, Watch and Ward and Route Rider Service — Business Auxiliary Services v. Business Support Services — Business Auxiliary service as service rendered on behalf of electricity company/department.
Billing and Accounting — Energy audit — Consumer indexing — Business Support Services.
Demand — Limitation — Period involved from 1-7-2003 to 30-9-2006 — Appellant did not approach Department till 1-3-2006 — Classification changed by the Tribunal — Matter remanded to adjudicating authority for fresh consideration and determination of tax liability and penalty imposable.
Classification of Services — Business Auxiliary Services — Business Support Services — Support Services to Business or commerce (BSS) provided in relation to business or commerce while Business Auxiliary Services provided on behalf of the client.
Facts:
- The appellant was engaged in providing services such as Electricity Call Centre, Customer Service Centre and Computerised Collection Centre services to electricity companies and electricity departments. The appellant relied on Notification No. 8/2003-ST, which exempted call centre service. However, the Department demanded payment of tax under Business Auxiliary Service.
- The Department investigated and on verification of the records understood that the appellant had rendered the following taxable services:
- Operating and maintaining the Electricity Call Centre, Customer Service Centre, Computerised Collection Centre, Energy Audit, Consumer Indexing, Watch and Ward and Route Rider service, Billing and Software maintenance services.
- The Department took a view that the said activities would fall under Business Auxiliary Service and the assessee was liable to levy of Service tax with interest as applicable.
- The learned advocate on behalf of the appellant challenged the same on the following grounds:
Correctness of classification of services made in the Order-in-Original
Limitation
Imposition of penalty
Held:
- Call Centre activities: The activities of registration of complaints/monitoring of complaints, collection of payments, accounting for the same and management of accounts and complaints cannot be called as call centre activities.
- Registering of complaints and collection of bills: Once the appellant deals with the customer, he is acting on behalf of the electricity company/ department and therefore classification of services provided by the appellant may be classified under Business Auxiliary Service and not under BSS.
- Business Support Services: Billing and Accounting, Energy Audit and Consumer indexing services fall under Business Support Services.
- Extended period of limitation: It is a statutory obligation on part of every service provider to see whether the service rendered by him is liable to Service tax and make declaration to the Department. There is no indication to show whether the appellant had sought clarification from the Department or obtained any legal opinion as regards liability to Service tax. It has to be noted that even on 3-3-2006, when the application was made, the appellant had not indicated all the activities undertaken by them. Therefore, invocation of extended period was upheld.
- Penalty: Since the Commissioner had imposed penalty, but not quantified the same, the order was held defective to that effect.
- In view of the fact that in some cases, classification had changed, in some cases, the assessee’s claim was accepted and the demand as such was to be re-quantified, the matter was remanded for fresh consideration and determination of duty liability and imposition of penalty.
