Important Point
Paper based decorative laminated sheets/Boards and cotton fabric based laminates fall under Heading 3920.21/ 3920.37 of New Tariff of Sched­ules to Central Excise & Tariff Act, 1985.

Judgment

S.C. Agrawal, J.-

Civil Appeal Nos. 1852-53/1991, 2516-21/1992 and 11899/1996

These appeals by the Revenue raise a common question namely, wheth­er paper based laminated Sheets/Board are classifiable for the purpose of excise duty under Heading 3920.21 of the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act’) as claimed by the Revenue or under Heading 4818.90 of the said Schedule till February 28, 1988 and under Heading 4823.90 of the said Schedule on and after March 1, 1988 as found by the Customs Excise & Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Tribu­nal’).

2. M/s. Wood Polymers Ltd., the respondent in Civil Appeals Nos. 1852-53 of 1991, manufactures (i) paper based decorative laminated sheets,(ii) cotton fabric based laminates and (iii) paper based insu­lators electrical grade. The said products were classified by the Assistant Collector of Central Excise under Chapter 39 sub-Heading 3920-21. The said classification was approved in appeal by the Collec­tor of Central Excise (Appeals). On further appeal by the assessee, the Tribunal, by its judgment dated March 6, 1990, held that paper based decorative laminated sheets/boards are classifiable under sub-heading 4818.90 till February 28, 1988 and under Heading 4823.90 on and after March 1, 1988, and that cotton fabric based laminates are classifiable under Heading 3922.90 till February 28, 1988 and under Heading 3926.90 on and after March 1, 1988. As regards paper based insulators it was held that same are classifiable under Heading 8546.00. In taking the said view the Tribunal has followed its earlier judgments in Amrit Polymers & Composites Ltd., Hyderabad v. CCE Hyderabad1, and M/s. Meghdoot Laminate Pvt. Ltd. v. CCE Ahmedabad2. As regards paper based insulators the Tribu­nal has pleased reliance on its decision in CCE Ahmedabad v. Metro Wood Engineering Works3. Civil Appeals Nos. 1852-53 of 1991 have been filed by the Revenue against the said judgment of the Tribunal.

3. The same view was taken by the Tribunal in judgment dated August 17, 1991 in the case of M/s. Meghdoot Laminate Pvt. Ltd. and in the judgment dated November 3, 1995 in the case of M/s. Moti Polymers in respect of paper based decorative laminated sheets which were held to be classifiable under Heading 4818.90 and not under Heading 3920.21 as claimed by the Revenue. Civil Appeals Nos. 2516.21 of 1991 Civil Appeals No. 11899 of 1995 have been filed against the said judgment of the Tribunal.

4. On behalf of the Revenue it has been submitted that the matter now stands covered by the recent judgment of this Court in CCE Hyderabad v. Bakelite Hylam4. In that case the Court has considered the ques­tions regarding the classification for the purpose of excise duty of the following items : (i) Decorative laminated sheets; (ii) Industrial laminated sheets which are paper based, and (iii) Glass Epoxy laminated sheets. In the judgment under appeal in that case the Tribunal had held that the all these varieties of laminated sheets were not covered by Entry 15-A(2) and were classifiable under residuary Item 48 of the Old Tariff which was in operation prior to coming into force of the Act and that the said products were classifiable under Heading 4818.90 till February 28, 1988 and under Heading 4823.90 on or after March 1, 1988 and that they did not fall under Heading 3920.21 till February 28, 1988 and under Heading 3920.37 on or after March 1, 1988 of the New Tariff in the Schedule to the Act. Reversing the said view of the Tribunal, this Court has held that the Tribunal had rightly classified decorative laminates under residuary Item 68 of the Old Tariff. But as regards classification under the New Tariff, this Court set aside the decision of the Tribunal in so far as it classified decorative lami­nated sheets under Heading 4818.90/4823.90 of the New Tariff and held that decorative laminated sheets were classifiable under Heading 3920.31/ 3920.37 of the Ne