CESTAT Chandigarh Remands Dabur Appeals Over Excess Self-Credit, Excise Duty Demands For Recalculation

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Chandigarh, has sent back a batch of appeals involving demands against Dabur India Ltd.'s Jammu and Kashmir units for allegedly taking refunds or self-credit in excess of the value addition permitted under the applicable exemption.For Unit I, the Department had demanded ₹3.45 crore as repayment of self-credit and a further ₹12.41 lakh as excise duty. For Unit II, it had demanded ₹5.40 crore as repayment of self-credit and a further...

Bills Issued By GTA Can Qualify As Consignment Notes If They Contain Essential Particulars: CESTAT Allahabad

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Allahabad has recently held that a document issued by a Goods Transport Agency (GTA) need not be titled a “consignment note” to qualify as one, as its substance and contents are material.A bench comprising Judicial Member P. K. Choudhary and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan relied on the words “by whatever name called” in Section 65(50b) of the Finance Act, 1994, which defines a GTA. The provision covers a person providing services...

Laser Imagers Are Accessories, Not Diagnostic Apparatuses For Customs Duty Purposes: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has recently ruled that a laser imager used to print images generated by MRI, CT, X-ray and other diagnostic machines cannot itself be treated as a “diagnostic apparatus” for determining customs duty.“Admittedly, the laser imager has no diagnostic skill or capability of its own and must necessarily receive inputs from diagnostic equipment to carry out its function of printing films. In effect, it is an 'accessory' to the diagnostic equipment from which it receives inputs, as it...

Madras High Court Orders Provisional Release Of Vimpro Tech Goods Pending Adjudication

The Madras High Court on 5 August held that pendency of a Customs investigation by itself cannot be a ground to deny provisional release of imported goods when Section 110A of the Customs Act, which specifically permits provisional release of detained goods subject to conditions, applies. Justice Hemant Chandangoudar set aside the Customs order rejecting Vimpro Tech's request for provisional release and directed the authorities to release the goods subject to conditions, while allowing the...

Kerala High Court Grants Wild Planet ITC Benefit, Says Delay Cannot Defeat Statutory Right

The Kerala High Court on 28 July held that a taxpayer cannot be denied the statutory benefit of input tax credit (ITC) under Section 16(5) of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act merely because it failed to file a rectification application within the deadline prescribed by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC). Justice Ziyad Rahman A.A. allowed the petition filed by Wild Planet Pvt. Ltd. and set aside the order denying the company ITC, holding that Section 16(5)...

Telangana High Court Upholds ₹43.48 Crore CST Demand Against Mahindra & Mahindra For Inter-State Sales

The Telangana High Court on 5 August held that movement of vehicles from Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.'s Zaheerabad manufacturing unit to its regional sales offices in other States constituted inter-State sales under Section 3(a) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. A Division Bench comprising Justices P. Sam Koshy and Narsing Rao Nandikonda upheld a tax demand of around Rs. 43.48 crore, and dismissed two writ petitions filed by the company. It observed: “...It is not necessary, for a...

No Supply Of Service In Building Plan Sanction Process, GST Cannot Be Levied: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has held that Goods and Services Tax (GST) cannot be levied on charges collected for sanctioning a building plan, as the process does not involve any supply of goods or provision of services. Justice R. Nataraj on 21 July, partly allowed a petition filed by Sai Sravanthi Infra Projects Pvt. Ltd. and others against the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and other authorities, holding that the authorities lacked statutory authority to impose several charges while...

Patna High Court Quashes Reassessment Based On Bank's Wrong Reporting Of ₹12.50 Lakh FD As ₹12.50 Cr

The Patna High Court on 10 August quashed income tax reassessment proceedings against Satya Narayan Jha after Union Bank of India wrongly reported his fixed deposit of Rs. 12.50 lakh as Rs. 12.50 crore to the Income Tax Department, holding that the Department had relied on incorrect information. A Division Bench of Justices Rajeev Ranjan Prasad and Ramesh Chand Malviya held that the notice issued under Section 148A(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, which requires the taxpayer to be given an...

ITAT Delhi Cuts Share Of BBC Global News' India Ad Revenue Attributed To Indian PE From 15% To 12%

The Delhi Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has reduced from 15% to 12% the share of BBC Global News Limited's Indian advertisement revenue treated as profit attributable to its Indian Permanent Establishment (PE). The same finding has been applied to assessment years 2017-18 to 2022-23.The ITAT took assessment year 2022-23 as the lead case. It held that while an increase from the earlier 8.75% rate was justified, the assessing officer had fixed the 15% rate merely on estimation....

Order Authorising Arrest Under GST Law Must Be Communicated Before Arrest: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that an order authorising arrest under the GST law must be communicated to the person concerned before the authorities proceed with the arrest.“To ensure that anyone who is facing the apprehension of arrest is not left in a position of irreparable damage, we have said that Section 69 [CGST Act] order has to be communicated,” a bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu held.The court made the observation while setting aside a Bombay High Court...

Evidentiary Value Of Kachcha Parchis, Electronic Data Must Be Examined By GST Appellate Authority: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that questions concerning the admissibility, authentication and evidentiary value of electronic data and handwritten 'kachcha parchis' relied upon in a GST case should be raised before the statutory appellate authority rather than examined in writ proceedings.The division bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain was dealing with a batch of writ petitions challenging orders passed under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act against several entities...

Delhi High Court Rejects Challenge To CGST Proceedings As SGST Notices Came Later

The Delhi High Court has rejected a challenge to Central GST proceedings after finding that the corresponding State GST notices were issued later. The division bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain made the ruling while dealing with a writ petition filed by a partnership firm challenging CGST proceedings as being barred under Section 6(2)(b). The provision provides that where a proper officer under the State GST law has initiated proceedings on a subject matter, no proceedings shall...