Home
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2024 (5) TMI 857 - CESTAT NEW DELHIAdjudication of show cause notice (SCN) after several year - Non/short payment of central excise duty - clearance of resin - exemption under N/N. 03/2005 dated 24.02.2005 or not - HELD THAT:- The product of the appellant was exempted from the payment of central excise duty vide Notification No. 03/2005 dated 24.02.2005 up to 28.02.2006 where after the subsequent Notification No. 07/2006 dated 01.03.2006 had withdrawn the said notification. The later notification was challenged by others involved in manufacture of the impugned resins before the Hon’ble High Court of Uttarakhand. The Division Bench of Hon’ble Uttarakhand High Court in Commissioner Central Excise & Customs Versus M/s Dujodwala Resins & Terpenes Ltd. & another, Anil Kumar Sud, Pooran Chandra Dalakoti, M/s Sud Pines Pvt. Ltd., Rakhsh Pal Shastri [2019 (7) TMI 1692 - UTTARAKHAND HIGH COURT] allowed the special appeals filed by the department holding that central excise duty is payable on extraction of raw pine resin. These particular facts makes it abundantly clear that initially in the Year 2006 as per appellant’s own notification, the payment of excise duty on clearance of resins was exempted. It remained exempted till 28.02.2006. No doubt subsequent to 10.07.2019, appellant is liable to pay the excise duty on clearance of resins but for the period prior the said date (the date of order of judgment by the Division Bench of Hon’ble Uttarakhand High Court). It is very much apparent on record that except for the period from 18.09.2006 to 09.11.2006, the order confirming demand was in existence, however, the order got sub juticed w.e.f. November 2006 itself and got finally decided only on 10.07.2019 - The amount of duty as was collected by the appellants during the impugned period, apparently and admittedly stand released to its buyers. Thus, present becomes a case where no excise duty was collected from the buyers, question of discharging any liability towards excise becomes redundant. It is observed that even department could not proceed upon the show cause notices due to the ongoing litigation with respect to the impugned issue resulting into a late decision with respect to these show cause notices. The show cause notices as old as of the Year 2007, 2008, 2013 and 2014 got decided by the impugned order dated 21.09.2020. As per the statutory mandate, the central excise officer has to determine the amount of duty within 6 months of issuing a show cause notice in terms of Section 11A(11) of Central Excise Act. The adjudication in the present case, apparently is beyond several years. The show cause notices are not sustainable on this ground itself. The order under challenge is hereby set aside - Appeal allowed.
|