Home Case Index All Cases Central Excise Central Excise + HC Central Excise - 2020 (2) TMI HC This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2020 (2) TMI 1164 - HC - Central ExciseRefund of Excise Duty - payment made under protest - applicability of time limitation u/s 11B of the Central Excise Act - HELD THAT:- The exemption in the present case was granted to the specific Assessee, in the specific facts and for specific quantity of the Coin Blanks manufactured and supplied by the Assessee. This was done for the purpose of maintaining the value of Coin Blanks itself - The payment of excise duty at the time of clearance of goods in anticipation of exemption right from the day one was therefore with the ardent hope of real and effective exemption and the refund of duty paid by the Assessee under compulsion for clearance of the goods. Such a payment even though not labelled by the Assessee to have been paid 'under protest', could very well be treated as payment made by the Assessee 'under protest' only as per the provisions of Section 11B of the Act paving the way for the rightful refund of excise duty in consonance with Article 265 of Constitution of India which does not permit the State to collect the tax or duty without authority of law. The refund is for clearances of goods in question pertains to period from 1994. Already 26 years have passed due to one mistake in the decision taken by the Assessing Authority. The intention of Adhoc exemption itself was a glaring fact available before the Assessing Authority. Particularly the clarification issued on 30.06.1995 makes it clear that exemption was applicable for the entire quantity of goods supplied but ignoring this fact, the Asseesing Authority passed an order denying the refund partially, invoking the technical plea of limitation ignoring the exemption under the Second Proviso of Section 11B of the Act, whereby no limitation would apply when payment of Duty is treated as payment made 'under protest'. The present Writ Petition filed by Assessee Steel Authority of India Ltd., deserves to be allowed - Petition allowed - decided in favor of petitioner.
|