Order Date – 27 April 2023

Parties: Messrs Mahasagar Travels Limited and Gujarat Travels Vs Commissioner of Central Excise & ST, Bhavnagar

Facts –

• The Appellant, Messrs Mahasagar Travels Limited and Gujarat Travels, are engaged in the inter-state and intra-state transportation of passengers and registered as Tour Operators and paying service tax in normal course of their business.
• Upon discontinuing the levy of service Tax on tour operators, the appellant filed a refund application. Though the refund was sanctioned but the same was credited in the Consumer Welfare Fund on the ground that appellant have recovered service tax from their customers and the same was shown as expenditure in the books of accounts.

Issue –

• Whether the refund can be credited to Customer Welfare Fund when the service tax paid was shown as expenditure in the books of accounts?

Order –

• The Tribunal observed that the very issue involved in the present case is no longer res-integra as the same has been decided against the assessee in the case of CCE & ST, Rajkot vs. M/s. Eagle Corporation Pvt. Limited – 2018 (7) TMI 855 – CESTAT AHMEDABAD wherein it was held that refund of the appellant in the above cases is hit by unjust-enrichment.
• Thus it was held that since the appellant have paid service tax in the routine course and subsequently when the service tax was made exempted retrospectively, the incidence of service tax stood passed on. Therefore, the lower authorities have rightly credited the refund amount in the Consumer Welfare Fund.
• The appeals are dismissed