The Telangana High Court order to pay the GST on the license fee in place of Service Tax
Telangana High Court
Telangana High Court said that subsumption of service tax will not absolute liability to pay GST if service tax was agreed to be paid in agreement. They said that petitioner is liable to pay the GST on the license fee in place of service tax as the petitioner was paying service tax separately under the terms of deeds of license. The case was Smt. K. Himabindu V/S TSRTC (W.P. No.20885 of 2018). The case was presided by THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE T. VINOD KUMAR AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE PULLA KARTHIK.
Facts of the case
- In this case petitioner was granted license by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation to set up business for running popcorn stall on payment of agreed license fee and for the said purpose she had entered into agreement titled ‘Deed of license’.
- The counsel of the petitioner said that TSRTC demanded GST payment from the petitioner and also said that demand made is contrary to the contract to the terms of Deed of License.
- The Counsel of the respondent said that in terms of Deed of License, the licensee had agreed to pay service tax on the monthly license fee in addition to the license fee payable periodically and when the GST was introduced in 2017 instead of service tax they demanded for GST.
- In the Deed of license, it was specified that the licensee shall pay the service tax at 14% payment of monthly license fee. The TSRTC were charging the service tax separately and the same was being paid by the petitioner without any demur.
Judgment
The court held that petitioner’s claim for the non-payment of GST was Invalid. As the GST is the substitute of Service Tax petitioner is liable to pay GST. The said writ petition was dismissed on this ground and the petitioner was held liable to pay GST.
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JUDGEMENT REVIEWED BY NAMRATA SINGH