2015 (11) TMI 362
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.... bus bodies on duty paid chassis supplied by M/s. Eicher Motors and others. The appellant was paying automobile cess on the body building manufacture till 2005 but stopped paying automobile cess thereafter on the insistence of chassis suppliers, who had already paid automobile cess on the value of the chassis in terms of CBEC Circular No.48/88 dated 31.08.88. The appellant filed refund claims before the Department for automobiles cess paid during earlier period. Subsequent to that in view of Chapter Note 5 to Chapter 87 in the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985, the body building activity was considered to be amounting to manufacture. Therefore, as per Revenue, automobile cess was required to be paid by the appellant. In these circumstances, s....
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...., the activity of the body building amounts to manufacture. Therefore, the Circular dated 31.08.1988 has lost its relevance and the Chapter Note 5 of Chapter 87 was introduced later. He further submits that Rule 2 (f) of the Automobile Cess Rules, 1984 clearly lays down that, "words and expression used in this Rule and not defined in these Rules but defined in Central Excise Act, 1944 or the Rules made thereunder shall have the meaning respectively assigned to them in that Act or the Rules", therefore, the word "manufacture" in Section 9(1) of the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951, one has to look into the definition of Central Excise Act, 1944. Therefore, the appellants are the manufacturer of the automobiles as per Chapter....
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....the vehicle manufacturers and not from the body builders. Further, the provision of IDR Act, 1951, under which the notification levying the cess has been issued, provides that the rate of cess shall not in any case exceed two annas per cent of the value of the goods. If the cess is levied in line with the Excise Tariff Act, 1985, this would exceed the maximum rate of l/8th per cent prescribed in the IDR Act. Therefore, the cess may continue to be levied and collected on the vehicles in the condition they are cleared from the premises of the manufacturers and no cess should be levied again in case the body on the chassis is built by an independent body builder on the cess paid chassis. The cess should be levied and collected accordingly. ....