In Brief

These grouped civil appeals challenge service tax assessments on composite works contracts before the Finance Act 2007 amendment. The Supreme Court held that service tax was not leviable on the service component of composite/indivisible works contracts prior to June 1, 2007, when the definition of 'works contract' was introduced in Section 65(105)(zzzza) of the Finance Act, 1994. The Court applied stare decisis principles to uphold the binding precedent in Larsen and Toubro Ltd. (2016), which had consistently been followed since 2015. Most appeals were allowed, assessment orders quashed, and one revenue appeal dismissed.

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