ROHIT RANJAN AGARWAL,J. - (1.) Heard Sri Tarun Gulati along with Sri Kunal Kishore and Ms.Pooja Talwar, learned counsel for revisionist and Sri B.K.Pandey, learned standing counsel for respondent.
(2.) Revisionist is a Company incorporated under the Companies Act, having its unit in Uttar Pradesh at Noida and Lucknow. It is registered both under the U.P.Trade Tax Act as well as Central Sales Tax Act. Dispute is in regard to Assessment Year 2001-02 (U.P.). According to revisionist, it is engaged in the business of software development and rendering support services. According to revisionist its software business is divided in two parts, one which deals with standard software packages, which are sold off the shelf, and the other type of product in which the Company is mainly involved is software development as per client specifications and rendering support work for its client (software consultancy). According to revisionist, Noida unit, which is registered with Software Technology Park of India (known as "STP") renders only the software services to overseas client while Lucknow unit has two distinct locations known as Lucknow STP and Lucknow non-STP. The STP location works on similar basis as Noida unit providing only software services to overseas clients, while non-STP location caters to domestic client by providing specific application software development and support services generally known as software consultancy services.
(3.) According to revisionist, computer software sold off the shelf also called as branded software, trade tax was charged and the same was deposited with the Department and the customer can use the licensed standard software as it is. As far as the agreement entered by the assessee with various clients for developing application software strictly on the basis of the specific needs of a particular client, the intellectual rights in so developed software solution vested with the client.;