CESTAT Rules in Favor of Carpenter Classics: Works Contract Service Not Taxable Pre-2007
The Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) Bangalore has allowed Carpenter Classics India Pvt. Ltd.’s appeal, quashing a service tax demand under ‘Erection, Commissioning, or Installation Service’ for the period 2006–2007. The Tribunal held that the company’s activity—designing, supplying, and installing modular kitchens—qualified as a works contract service, which was not taxable before June 1, 2007, as per the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Larsen & Toubro (2015). The decision reinforces the principle of stare decisis, preventing retrospective tax demands on settled classifications.
M/s. Carpenter Classics India Pvt. Ltd.
VERSUS
The Commissioner of Service Tax