LAWS(CE)-2014-3-12

LANDMARK EDUCATION INDIA Vs. COMMR. OF SERVICE TAX

Decided On March 06, 2014
Landmark Education India Appellant
V/S
Commr. Of Service Tax Respondents

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE appeals are directed against Orders -in -Original No. 20/KLG/Th -II/2009, dated 31 -12 -2010 & No. 28/ST/WLH/2011, dated 20 -12 -2011 passed by the Commissioner of Central Excise, Thane -II. The amount of duty, penalties involved and period in dispute are as under: -

(2.) BEING aggrieved by the aforementioned Orders -in -Original, the appellants have preferred appeals before this Tribunal on the following grounds: -

(3.) LEARNED Add. Commissioner (AR) appearing for the Revenue supports the impugned order and has placed reliance on the ruling of this Tribunal in the case of Ajai Kumar Agnihotri v. Commissioner of Central Excise, Kanpur (Tri. -Del) wherein this Tribunal has held that where the ruling in support of the appellants in identical facts were pronounced after the end of the period in dispute, it cannot be said that the appellant had a bona fide belief in view of the ruling pronounced subsequently. Further reliance has been placed on the Larger Bench's ruling of the Tribunal in the case of Great Lakes Institute of Management Ltd. & Others v. CCE, Chennai & Others - : 2013 -TIOL -1480 -CESTAT -DEL -LB : 2013 (32) S.T.R. 305 (Tri. -LB),wherein it has been held that the provisions of the Act enact a specific regime of taxation under a distinct field of legislation authorized to Parliament. In the absence of authorization under the provisions of the Act, to refer to provisions in any other enactment to identify the scope and contours of expressions used in the Act, identifying etymological nuances, distinctions or searching for explication of meaning of expressions used in the Act, by recourse to definitions or meaning of similar or analogous expressions in other legislation, is inappropriate. In the considered view of the Larger Bench, 'commercial training or coaching' means must be ascertained exclusively from the relevant provisions of the Finance Act and applying the appropriate interpretative principles in case of grammatical, syntactic or contextual ambiguity. The taxable service of 'commercial training or coaching' occurs when any institute or establishment is engaged in the activity of imparting skill, knowledge or lessons on any subject or field (excluding sports) irrespective of whether such imparting of skill, knowledge or lessons is in respect of particular discipline or a broad spectrum of disciplines/academic areas; irrespective of the nomenclature or description of the institute or establishment as a coaching or training centre or an educational institution; regardless of whether an institute or establishment is incorporated by or registered under any law; and irrespective of distinctions on the basis of curriculum, course content, teaching methodology, course duration or otherwise. Activities of imparting skills, knowledge, lessons on any subject or field or when provided by any entity, institution or establishment which is excluded by a specific and legislated exclusionary clause would alone be outside the fold of the taxable activity.