S.S. ASSOCIATES Vs. COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL EXCISE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is filed by the appellant against the impugned Order -in -Appeal No. 173/2009 dated 8.5.2009.

(2.) WE find that the issue involved in this case being in a narrow compass, hence stay application is allowed and appeal taken up for disposal. The relevant facts that arise for consideration are the appellants herein had entered into a contract with M/s Aspin Wall & Co for the purpose of rendering services of loading, standardization, unloading, stacking, weighing etc. The said contract was entered by the appellant with M/s Aspin Wall & Co On a specific intelligence, the lower authorities visited the premises of the appellants and resumed documents. On scrutiny of the said documents it was noticed by the officers of the revenue that the appellants were to provide all the service as enumerated above, had supplied labourers to M/s Aspin Wall & Co & CWC. On conclusion of the investigation and scrutiny of the documents and after recording the statements of various persons, the lower authorities felt that the services rendered by the appellant would fall under 'manpower recruitment & supply agency' and having not discharged the service tax liability, appellant is liable for discharging service tax liability for the period from August 2005 to December 2006. Coming to such a conclusion, show cause notices were issued to the current appellant. The appellant filed a detailed reply to the show cause notice and contested each and every allegation made in the show cause notice. The main ground of the appellant before the adjudicating authority was that the contract which was given by M/s Aspin Wall & Co was a works contract and not for supply of labourers. It was also argued that the show cause notice is hit by limitation. The learned Commissioner (appeals) after considering the submissions made by the appellant before him during the personal hearing and also considering the reply filed by the appellants, came to the following conclusion:

(3.) LEARNED Counsel appearing on behalf of the appellants would submit as under: