Whereas individual lawyers will now be subjected to Service Tax only if representation made to a business entity, other professionals (CAs etc.) will have to charge ST for all services of practically whatever nature, not just representation.
Excuse is that if CAs, CS, Cost Accts. be exempt for representation, and Lawyers will be charged, this will be discrimination against lawyers.
I would like to reproduce what Mr. BN Gururaj, a famous Advocate of Bangalaore wrote to me a few days ago why Govt. displays more sensitivity to Lawyers :
I too have often wondered about the effectiveness of lawyers' strike. Willing or unwilling, government and judicial establishment listens to them.
I suspect that the reasons are manifold. Firstly, entire judicial establishment is made up of erstwhile lawyers (whether successful or unsuccessful in legal profession!). Perhaps, strike by lawyers strikes a chord of sympathy.
Secondly, even the legislative drafts men are lawyers. There is a tendency to safeguard interest of their profession keeping in view the remote possibility of their returning to the practise.
Thirdly, since and especially during the freedom struggle, lawyers have been in the forefront of major political battles. Most leading statesmen of yesteryear from from legal practise (even including a non-practising lawyer like Pandit Nehru!).
Foruthly, all bureaucrats and politicians need help of lawyers. In the present genre of this class, most people need lawyers' help most of the time.
Lastly, and most importantly, government is the biggest litigant in the country. Though present service tax regime does not bring government advocates under service tax net, governments can hardly manage its Himalayan heap of cases without legal help, especially in these days of PJT case, 2G case, CWG case, and so on.
I suspect that lawyers stand more or less on the same footing as GTAs who held the country for ransom in 2004, when service tax on GTA was inserted. Our the then brave FM shifted the burden of compliance from a belligerent goods transport sector to hapless, unorganised consumers of goods transport service.
Talk about payment of income tax. Lawyers must be the smallest community of taxpaying professionals. Lawyers on civil and criminal practise will throw out any client who speaks of issuing a receipt, much less talk of doing a TDS on lawyers's bills!
CAs must protest this sudden withdrawl of exemption without any advance debate. Was ICAI sleeping and has been caught napping ?
This kind of move should have come with budget proposal and proper advance notice.
I don't just believe that ICAI never had any hint of this withdrawl.
What are you going to do now, dear CAs ?
Don't just
Kind regards,
Rebecca Andrews
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