News Broadcasting
Central Tribunal orders Star, Zee to pay service tax
MUMBAI: There are those in the industry who say this was a case that Star India and Zee Telefilms were bound to lose and so it panned out finally.
In a rare case of working for the same cause, both media companies had taken their legal battle to the Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (Cestat), Delhi after they were held liable to pay service tax in a ruling of the Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals) Mumbai, dated 18 November, 2002.
In its final ruling given recently, Cestat rejected the appeals against the orders passed by the Commissioner of Central Excise in Mumbai. Both Zee and Star had argued that they were in fact operating as collection agents for their holding companies based abroad and therefore were not liable to pay service tax as far as ad revenues earned out of India were concerned.
The argument put forth by a high-profile battery of lawyers separately representing Zee and Star was that they worked on a commission basis and therefore their activities could not be termed as ‘taxable service’ as defined under section 65(72).
The argument put forth by Zee Telefilms was that it was only a representative of Asia Today Ltd. (ATL) and Expand Fast Holdings Ltd (Expand), Mauritius selling advertising space in India for its network channels. Star India’s contention was on similar lines as far as its relationship to Satellite Television Region Limited (Star) Hong Kong was concerned.
The final ruling by the Central Tribunal closes the lid on what has been a lengthy appeals process and is bound to be an issue where the Indian Broadcasting Foundation will play a part as regards the service tax component that has to be billed into advertising that the channels book.
This is expected to become an even bigger bone of contention this year because the expectations are that in the next budget, the service tax charge will be hiked to 12 per cent from the current 8 per cent. It in fact went up from 5 per cent in 2002 to 8 per cent in last year’s budget announcement.
When contacted for an official response, a senior Zee Telefilms executive had this to say: “The order does not put any liability on the company as we had been paying the service tax under protest for the period between 1999 and 2001 along with the other industry players.”
The executive clarified that Zee was exploring the possibility of going in appeal against the Tribunal order. He, however added, “A final call on this would depend on the stand the IBF takes because it is an issue that affects everyone in the industry.”
An official reaction from Star could not be elicited at the time this report was filed.
News Broadcasting
Kamlesh Singh receives Haldi Ghati Award from MMCF
India Today Group editor honoured for three decades of journalism at Udaipur ceremony.
MUMBAI- Kamlesh Singh just turned a lifetime of sharp words into a shiny shield because when journalism wakes up a society, even the Maharana of Mewar wants to pin a medal on it.
The Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF) conferred its prestigious Haldi Ghati Award on Kamlesh Singh, a senior editor at the India Today Group, during a ceremony in Udaipur on 15 March 2026. The national award, instituted in 1981-82, recognises “work of permanent value that initiates an awakening in society through the medium of journalism.”
Singh, who leads several editorial initiatives including Aaj Tak Radio, the Teen Taal community and The Lallantop, was presented the honour by Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar, Managing Trustee of MMCF. The citation highlighted his three decades of contributions to Indian media, innovations in digital journalism, mentoring young reporters, and his popular podcast persona “Tau” on Teen Taal, which fosters thoughtful public discourse.
The Haldi Ghati Award, named after the historic Battle of Haldighati symbolising valour and resilience, is one of four national awards given annually by MMCF. Past recipients include Tavleen Singh, Piyush Pandey and Raj Chengappa.
Other honourees this year included Padma Vibhushan Pt Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Vedamurti Devvrat Rekhe, Treeman of India Marimuthu Yoganathan, Vir Chakra Capt Rizwan Malik, and US-based researcher Molly Emma Aitken, who received the Colonel James Tod Award for contributions to understanding Mewar’s spirit and values.
In an era where headlines often shout louder than substance, the MMCF quietly reminded everyone that real journalism isn’t about noise, it’s about the quiet, persistent work that stirs society awake, one thoughtful story at a time.
