Home Case Index All Cases Central Excise Central Excise + AT Central Excise - 2006 (5) TMI AT This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2006 (5) TMI 232 - AT - Central ExciseRefund - finalization of provisional assessment - recovery of sums due to Government - Interest u/s 11BB - HELD THAT:- In this case, the refund is actually due to the appellant. But the appellants by virtue of certain Orders-in-Original owed money to the Government. The important thing to be noted is that these amounts decided by the Orders-in-originals were not final. Every Order-in-Original can be appealed. Therefore, at the first stage of confirmation of a demand, no finality has been reached. To put in other words, those demands cannot be called as arrears. There is a possibility that these demands could be set aside by the Commissioner (A) or the Tribunal or any other judicial forum. That is why large number of decisions hold that refund cannot be adjusted against the demands which are sub-judice. In the present case, the action of the authorities in adjusting the refund is against the legal provisions. Section 11 should be involved only when the demands have reached finality and should not be invoked even at the initial stage. Section 11BB provides interest for delayed refunds. This is squarely applicable to the present case. The Commissioner (A) has not at all given any reason as to why the said section is not applicable. Thus, we allow the appeal with consequential relief.
|