TIOL-DDT 984 · the untouched capture
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<p align="justify"><font size="2"><strong><font color="#663399" size="3" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">TIOL-DDT 984 </font></strong><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><br>
04.11.2008 <br>
Tuesday </strong></font></font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#006600" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>CESTAT without a President – Waiting for a Justice </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The CESTAT is again without a President as it happens with routine regularity every couple of years. Normally a retired High Court Chief Justice is appointed as President of CESTAT. He/she hardly has two and a half years of service left. It takes about six months to get to know the organisation and by the time he is able to take full control and start making those footprints in the legal sands of time, it's time for him to go. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">In the present situation, the President left even before his tenure was complete. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">CESTAT is a very small organisation with hardly twenty Members, but it is an enormously powerful organisation, the last fact finding Authority in Indirect Tax litigation. Lakhs of Crores of rupees are at stake in the hallowed under-furnished precincts of the Tribunal, but somehow it is not given a fraction of the importance it deserves. It is really sad that such a Judicial body is headless quite often. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The present practice of appointing retired Chief Justices should be reconsidered. Maybe a sitting judge aged less than 60 years old should be appointed so that he can have at least five years of service in the Tribunal. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">But why should a sitting High Court Judge leave his status and perks to join the CESTAT? There should be enough incentives to attract sitting judges – better bungalows, better cars, more perks and maybe a huge salary. But the Rules may not allow any of these. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Another option that could be tried is to appoint young judges of the High Courts with more than ten years of service left. Once they join the Tribunal, they should be treated on par with Chief Justices of the High Courts and should be eligible to be appointed as Judges of the Supreme Court. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Judicial Members of the Tribunal on completing five years, should be appointed as High Court Judges and may be after a few years in the High Court, some of them can be brought back to the Tribunal as Vice Presidents to be ultimately promoted as President. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The civil litigation in the Tribunal is very crucial for the Government as it is all about MONEY. And the government should be serious about an organisation where its money is held up. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Compare the Settlement Commission with the CESTAT. The Settlement Commission, which decides about one hundredth of the number of cases decided by CESTAT, has ten times the staff and facilities! </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Dear FM, please urgently give the CESTAT more space, more cars, more libraries, more staff, more typists and a PRESIDENT. </font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#006600" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>Vigilance Awareness Week </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">All Central Government offices in the Country are observing Vigilance awareness Week from 3 rd through 7 th of November 2008. This has now become an annual farce. Yesterday all the officers took the following pledge (at least they are reported to have done so) </font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#006600" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>PLEDGE </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><font color="#663399">WE, THE PUBLIC SERVANTS OF INDIA, DO HEREBY SOLEMNLY PLEDGE THAT WE SHALL CONTINUOUSLY STRIVE TO BRING ABOUT INTEGRITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN ALL SPHERES OF OUR ACTIVITIES. WE ALSO PLEDGE THAT WE SHALL WORK UNSTINTINGLY FOR ERADICATION OF CORRUPTION IN ALL SPHERES OF LIFE. WE SHALL REMAIN VIGILANT AND WORK TOWARDS THE GROWTH AND REPUTATION OF OUR ORGANISATION. THROUGH OUR COLLECTIVE EFFORTS, WE SHALL BRING PRIDE TO OUR ORGANISATIONS AND PROVIDE VALUE BASED SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRYMEN. WE SHALL DO OUR DUTY CONSCIENTIOUSLY AND ACT WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOUR . </font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#663399"><strong><font color="#000000" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Funny?</font></strong></font> </p>
<p align="left"><font color="#006600" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>An Honest man </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The following is a short piece I wrote for a local paper six years ago during one such Vigilance week. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">As
my scooter stops at the red signal at RTC Cross Roads,( I am one of those
rare, foolish Hyderabadis, who stop on seeing red traffic signals), a young
man approaches me and asks me to buy a copy of a Telugu evening daily. I
am not interested. “Please Sir”, he implores. Something attracts me to the
young fellow and I tell him, “I don't want the paper, but how much would
you get by selling it? Fifty Paise ?, I will give you fifty paise”. “I AM
NOT A BEGGAR SIR”, is the emphatic reply. I am more impressed and curse myself
for my stupid arrogance in thinking that somebody would just like that accept
my paltry fifty paise which would have given me an immense amount of happiness
and I would have asked <em>Chitragupta</em> to make a note of my great sacrifice and
charity. I feel ashamed. So I offer to buy the paper. It is Three Rupees.
I pay him three Rupees and ask him to keep the paper with him, as reading
a Telugu eveninger was the last thing on my mind and my stupid arrogance
continued. Immediately he returned my three rupees and said, “Thank You Sir”. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">My humiliation was complete and the green light had come. I proceeded on my way profusely thanking that unknown honest innocent face, for he had taught me a few lessons. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">I hope I would have the same commitment to my job and at least half that honesty. </font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#006600" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>CIC Order Final </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">As per “ The Central Information Commission (Management) Regulations, 2007”, </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">23. <strong> Finality of Decision: </strong>(1) A decision or an order once pronounced by the Commission shall be final </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">(2) An appellant or a complainant or a respondent may, however, make an application to the Chief Information Commissioner for special leave to appeal or review of a decision or order of the case and mention the grounds for such a request; </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">(3) The Chief Information Commissioner, on receipt of such a request, may consider and decide the matter as he thinks fit. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Now this is amended to read as, </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">23. <strong>Finality of Decision: </strong>A decision or an order once pronounced by the Commission shall be final. </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">No more appeals and reviews? </font></p>
<p align="center"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><font color="#006600">Jurispruden</font><font color="#FF6633" size="5">tiol</font><font color="#006600">– Tomorrow's cases</font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6633" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><b><img src="http://www.taxindiaonline.com/RC2/image/stories/ddt_hammer.jpg" alt="Legal Corner Icon" width="100" height="84" hspace="5" border="0" align="left"></b></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></font><font color="#663399" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>CESTAT </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><font color="#FF6633">Department to lose all appeals in Kolkata – appeal dismissed for want of gazette notification for appointment of Chief Commissioner: CESTAT </font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6633" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><font color="#000000">PLEASE </font></strong><font color="#000000">recall our story <strong>Additional Charge Commissioner (or for that matter any Commissioner) has no <em>locus standi </em>to
file appeal before Tribunal as they are not appointed by notification
by Board – while reporting the case in </strong></font></font><font color="#000000" size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong><a href="http://www.taxindiaonline.com/RC2/subCatDesc.php3?subCatDisp_Id=52&filename=legal/cestat/2008/2008-TIOL-1642-CESTAT-KOL.htm" target="_blank">2008-TIOL-1642-CESTAT- KOL</a></strong></font><font color="#FF6633" size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong> .</strong></font> </p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Revenue lost that case because there was no notification appointing a particular person as the Commissioner of Customs and Central Excise, Siliguri . </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Now the CESTAT has dismissed another revenue appeal, because the Department could not produce the Gazette notification appointing the Chief Commissioners concerned. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#663399" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>Foreign Trade Policy </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6633" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>DGFT notification restricting import of marble from Srilanka only through Kolkata Port - Notification not in Public Interest - quashed: Bombay High Court </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>THE</strong> Government could have, if it was so advised, withdrawn the concession given in the Customs Tariff Act or it could have gone in for amendment of the Treaty between India and Sri Lanka. In our opinion, the object which is specified in the affidavit defeats both the notification issued under the Customs Tariff Act, as also the provisions of the India-Sri Lanka Treaty and, therefore, it cannot be said that the purpose of issuing the notification is legitimate and, therefore, in our opinion, it cannot be said that the notification impugned in the present petition has been issued in public interest, because what is opposed to law cannot be said to be in public interest. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#663399" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>Income Tax </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6633" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>Income tax - payments made to non-resident for data processing charges - As per amended Sec 9(1)(vii), such payments are fees for technical services, liable to TDS provisions: ITAT </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>THE </strong>provisions of TDS in our Income Tax Act are indeed tricky and all-encompassing by nature. What has further extended its long arm to new kinds of transactions which have arisen out of e-commerce or technology-driven payment systems are the constant efforts of the CBDT think-tanks to keep refining the wordings and expressions used in Sec 195. A close look at this Section may reveal that <strong><font color="#FF6633">a couple of Explanations have also been added while making amendments with retrospective effects. One such amendment was made vide Finance Act, 2007 in relation to fees for technical services.</font> </strong> But, along with the technical changes in the wordings of the relevant Sections, the CBDT has also provided <strong><font color="#FF6633">certain mechanisms for taxpayers who aspire for certainty in their business dealings. </font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#663399" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>See our columns tomorrow for the judgements </strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6666"><strong><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Until tomorrow with more DDT </font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6666"><strong><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Have a nice Day. </font></strong></font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF6666"><strong><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Mail your comments to</font></strong></font><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <a href="mailto:vijaywrite@taxindiaonline.com">vijaywrite@taxindiaonline.com </a></font></p>
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