Rs 5.5-cr service tax notice against film training institutes

The Finance Ministry has slapped a notice against Noida-based film training institutes demanding Rs 5.5 crore for allegedly evading service tax.
The show-cause notice has been issued against Asian Academy of Film and TV (AAFT), Asian School of Media Studies (ASMS), Asian Business School (ABS) and Asian School of Communication (ASC) by the Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI), official sources said. All these institutes are run under the aegis of Marwah Studios.
The institutes were allegedly not paying service tax on various creative courses offered by them, they said.
The Marwah Studios in its response said they were "surprised" to receive the notice.

"We have been paying service tax on time and are surprised to receive the notice. We are looking into the matter," Marwah Studios founder and Managing Director, Sandeep Marwah, said in response to a query by PTI.
The DGCEI has demanded about Rs 5.5 crore from these institutes.

Demands of about Rs 2.95 crore and Rs 1.75 crore have been raised against ASMS and AAFT, respectively, for allegedly evading service tax from 2009-10 to August, 2013, says the show-cause notice.
The central revenue department has demanded Rs 59.42 lakh from ABS for allegedly evading service tax between 2009-10 and 2010-11. ASC has been asked to pay Rs 18.26 lakh for allegedly evading service tax from 2011-12 to August, 2013, the notice added.

An inquiry was initiated by DGCEI officials on the basis of information that these institutes were allegedly not paying service tax. The officials had then last year visited the premises of Marwah Studios in this regard.
The officials had recorded statement of senior officials including Sandeep Marwah in connection with its investigation. Following months of investigation, the show-cause notice was issued demanding the service tax allegedly evaded by them, the sources added.
Marwah Studios has film producer Boney Kapoor and actors Sanjay Kapoor and Anil Kapoor, among others, on its board of directors.