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2021 (9) TMI 1232 - HC - Central ExciseRecovery of Interest and penalty - Rrejection of SVLDRS-1 - unquatified "amount in arrears" - no interest or penalty came to be adjudicated before introduction of the Scheme. Infact, no adjudication notice was issued in that regard - HELD THAT:- Once a valid settlement is reached, then, by way of a consequence provided under Section 129(1)(a) of the Scheme no interest or penalty liability may exist. Consequently, for the purposes of Sections 121(1)(c), 123(e), 124(1)(c) and 125(1)(f) also, the “amount in arrears” would be referable only to duty liability outstanding and not to interest or penalty liability, where only that liability may exist. If no amount of the Central Excise duty or Service Tax was due on the date of filing the declaration on SVLDRS-1, the fact that interest or penalty alone may have been claimed on that date, may not give rise to an eligibility under the Scheme. Here, admittedly, the entire Central Excise duty demand stood satisfied on 11.09.2018 and the entire Service Tax demand stood satisfied on 13.06.2019. In the present case, though the petitioner no.1 had deposited the entire duty demand, however, on its own showing, there did not exist any adjudication order with respect to the same, let alone any demand of interest and/or penalty - this is also not a case under Section 123(c) of the Scheme, inasmuch as, the petitioner no.1 does not contend that the amount of penalty and interest had ever been quantified in writing, by any means. The procedure i.e. manner of filling up the statutory Form SVLDRS-1 or the explanations furnished cannot create any right to the relief claimed that otherwise does not exist under the Scheme. Even if there were any doubt in that regard, undisputedly according to the petitioners themselves, no show cause notice came to be issued to them before the cut off date 30 June 2019 to confirm, either any amount of interest or penalty. Those amounts were otherwise never quantified in writing either by any statutory authority or the petitioners. In view of the above reasons, the first submission advanced by learned counsel for the petitioners cannot be accepted. For the same reasons, no recoveries are possible to be made pursuant to any determination made under the Scheme Regarding recovery notices issued - HELD THAT:- before any recovery of interest or penalty may be enforced against the petitioners it would have to be first adjudicated. Consequently, the communications dated 17.03.2020 and 07.04.2020 issued by respondent no.6 are found to be wanting in jurisdiction and wholly pre-mature. Any amount that may have been recovered pursuant to those communications may be refunded within a period of one month from today. Petition allowed in part.
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