TMI Blog2014 (9) TMI 330X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... formed from the side of the Department in our order in Tax Appeal No. 1294 of 2011, it may be stated that after circular dated 17-8-2011, no other circular has been issued by the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Excise and Customs, Government of India, New Delhi, authorizing the Department to file appeals where the amount is less than ₹ 10 lacs. Decided against Revenue. - Tax Appeal No. 2071 of 2010 - - - Dated:- 10-7-2012 - V.M. Sahai and N.V. Anjaria, JJ. Shri R.J. Oza, for the Appellant. JUDGMENT This appeal has been admitted on the following substantial questions of law : (i) Whether Honourable Tribunal has committed an error in interpreting Rule 5 of Cenvat Credit Rules along with sub-rule 2(1) pertaining to definition of input service while interpreting words used in manufacture by treating various maintenance services as service used in manufacture ? (ii) Whether Honourable Tribunal has committed error by including advertisement expenses, insurance premium employees (PA Policy), labour processing charges, repair of computers, legal and professional expenses, mobile expenses, consultation engineering services ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y to go into merits of this appeal. 4.1 The aforementioned two circulars issued by the department inter alia provide monetary limit for filing appeal before the High Court. Circular dated 28-10-2010 fixed limit of ₹ 2 lacs and if the duty and penalty amount involved is below that limit, no appeal should be filed by the Department. In the circular dated 17-8-2011 that limit is increased to ₹ 10 lacs. 4.2 The Circular dated 20-10-2010 is extracted and reproduced hereinbelow : F. No. 390/Misc./163/2010-JC Ministry of Finance Department of Revenue Central Board of Excise Customs New Delhi 20th October, 2010 1. The National Litigation Policy formulated by the Government of India aims to reduce Government litigation so that the Government cases to be a compulsive litigant. The purpose underlying this Policy is to ensure that valuable time of the Courts is spent in resolving pending cases and in bringing down the average pendency time in the Courts. To achieve this, the Government should become an efficient and responsible litigant. 2. It also states that appeals shall not be filed if the matter is covered by a se ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ment. For example, in a case involving duty of ₹ 1 Lakh with mandatory penalty of ₹ 1 lakh besides any other penalty imposed under the relevant provisions of Law, no appeal shall henceforth be filed in the Tribunal as the duty involved is within the monetary limit of ₹ 1 Lakh. Similarly, if the duty involved in a case is ₹ 2 Lakhs with equal mandatory penalty and any other penalty imposed under the Law in force at the relevant time, no appeal shall be filed before the High Court. 6. Adverse judgments relating to the following should be contested irrespective of the amount involved : (a) Where the constitutional validity of the provisions of an Act or Rule is under challenge. (b) Where notification/instruction/order or Circular has been held illegal or ultra vires. (c) Where audit objection on the issue involved in a case has been accepted by the Department. 7. It may also be noted that, wherever it is decided not to file appeal in pursuance of these instructions, which are aimed solely at reducing government litigation, such cases shall not have any precedent value. In such cases, Commissioners should specifically recor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... bunal, High Court and the Supreme Court. Sr. No. Appellate Forum Monetary limit 1 CESTAT ₹ 5,00,000/- 2 HIGH COURTS ₹ 10,00,000/- 3 SUPREME COURT ₹ 25,00,000/- 2. For ascertaining whether a matter would be covered within or without the aforementioned limits the determinative element would be duty/tax under dispute. To illustrate it further in a case involving duty of ₹ 5 lakhs or below with equal penalty and interest, as the case may be, no appeal shall be filed in the Tribunal. Similarly, no appeal shall be filed in the High Courts if the duty involved does not exceed ₹ 10 lakhs with or without penalty and interest. Further, the Commissionerates shall not send proposal to the Board for filing Civil Appeal or Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court in a case involving duty upto ₹ 25 lakhs, whether with penalty and interest or otherwise. However, where the imposition of penalty is the subject matter of dispute ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r para 3 of this Instruction). Therefore, in all cases of audit objections accepted by the Department, while protective demands may continue to be issued but the same would be subjected to the monetary limits for filing appeal in the Tribunal, High Courts and the Supreme Court. 5. The revised monetary limits shall come into force from 1-9-2011. 6. This instruction is in continuation of earlier instruction of even number dated 20-10-2010 and seeks to revise the monetary limits, exclusion clauses and clarifies the doubts raised by the field formations on this issue. 5. In the present appeal the amount involved is 36,505/-. Learned senior standing counsel for the appellant could not dispute the contents of the circulars and the monetary limits respectively fixed therein. It is true that though the appeal was filed on 15-9-2010 and thus before the date of circular, however when it came up for admission on 28-4-2011 at that time the circular was in force. 6. In the above view of the matter, we are of the opinion that learned counsel for the appellant ought to have brought to the notice of this Court the Circu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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