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GAUHATI HIGH COURT (DB)
T. Vaiphei and Ujjal Bhuyan, JJ.
Union of India and others - Petitioners
Versus
Amalgamated Plantations Pvt. Ltd. - Respondent
Review Pet. No. 121 of 2014
Decided On : 14-03-2016

Advocates Appeared:
For the Petitioner: S.C. Keyal, Asstt. Solicitor General of India.

Headnote:

Central Excise Act, 1944 - Section 11BB - Additional Duties of Excise (Goods of Special Importance) Act, 1957 - Section 3(3) - Additional Duties of Excise (Textile and Textile Articles) Act, 1978 - Section 3(3) - Entitlement of writ petitioner - Business of cultivation - Excise registration number - Sought for on ground - Duty refund - Seek rehearing - Petition has been filed by Union of India and three others for judgment and order passed by this Court in WP(C) No. - WP(C) No. was filed by respondent as writ petitioner - Petition was heard along-with another writ petition being WP(C) No. - Court was entitlement of writ petitioner to interest under Section 11BB of Central Excise Act on delayed excise duty refund by department to writ petitioner - Petitioner is a company incorporated under Companies Act, owning amongst others Estate in district - Petitioner is engaged in business of cultivation and manufacture of tea and tea waste, are exigible to excise duty under Chapter 9 of Schedule to Central Excise Tariff Act, having central excise registration number - Central Government formulated new industrial policy in giving various incentives to stimulate industrial development in North Eastern Region - Such incentives included exemption from payment of excise duty for a period of 10 years from commencement of production - Government of India issued notification No. giving concessions in excise duties - Notification was issued in exercise of power conferred by Sub-section (1) of Section 5A of Central Excise Act, read-with Section 3(3) of Additional Duties of Excise Act, and Section 3(3) of Additional Duties of Excise Act - – Held, Court also find that a Single Bench of Court in ELT while directing refund of excise duty paid in terms of notification, had also directed payment of interest for delayed payment as per provision of section 11 of Central Excise Act – Court section 11B of Central Excise Act does not exclude claim of refund made in terms of notification - Petitioners be entitled to interest section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, on excise duty refunded to them - Jurisdictional excise officers shall now determine interest amount payable to petitioners relevant periods - Petitioners within three months from today - Writ petitions are allowed - There will be no order as to cost - Review has been sought for on ground that two Central Government circulars have made it clear provision of Section 11B of Central Excise Act - Applicable in case of exemption notification - Circulars it is contended writ petitioner would not be entitled to interest on delayed refund of excise duty - Though this argument was advanced before writ Court - Court came to an erroneous finding - Such finding is required to be reviewed – Court are unable to accept contention advanced by petitioners - - Over-ride statutory provisions such as Section 11B of Central Excise Act, as interpreted by Court - Court while passing judgment and order - Appears petitioners actually seek rehearing of writ petition which is not permissible - Petition is dismissed

JUDGMENT AND ORDER :

Ujjal Bhuyan, J.

This petition has been filed by the Union of India and three others for review of judgment and order dated 08-11-2012 passed by this Court in WP(C) No. 1166/2012.

2. WP(C) No. 1166/2012 was filed by the respondent as the writ petitioner. The said writ petition was heard along-with another writ petition being WP(C) No. 2325/2012.

3. Question for consideration before the writ Court was the entitlement of the writ petitioner to interest under Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, 1944 on the delayed excise duty refund by the department to the writ petitioner.

4. Writ petitioner (petitioner, hereinafter) is a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956, owning amongst others the Chabua Tea Estate in the district of Dibrugarh, Assam. Petitioner is engaged in the business of cultivation and manufacture of tea and tea waste, which are exigible to excise duty under Chapter 9 of the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985, having central excise registration number.

5. The Central Government formulated new industrial policy in the year 1997 giving various incentives to stimulate industrial development in the North Eastern Region. Such incentives included exemption from payment of excise duty for a period of 10 years from commencement of production.

6. Pursuant thereto, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Government of India issued notification No. 33/99-CE dated 08-07-1999 giving concessions in excise duties. The said notification was issued in exercise of power conferred by Sub-section (1) of Section 5A of the Central Excise Act, 1944 read-with Section 3(3) of the Additional Duties of Excise (Goods of Special Importance) Act, 1957 and Section 3(3) of the Additional Duties of Excise (Textile and Textile Articles) Act, 1978. By the said notification, the goods specified in the schedule and cleared from a unit located in any one of the States in the North Eastern Region, including in the State of Assam, were exempted from excise duty leviable thereon.

7. Petitioner filed a claim on 18-10-2004 before the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Dibrugarh for refund of excise duty paid for the period from 08-07-1999 to 28-02-2003 amounting to Rs.1,10,61,418.00. The claim was made in terms of the aforesaid notification dated 08-07-1999, as amended.

8. Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Dibrugarh vide order dated 10-05-2005 held that the petitioner was eligible for exemption under notification dated 08-07-1999. Thereafter, the said authority vide order dated 05-08-2005 sanctioned refund of Rs. 77,52,409.00 in favour of the petitioner out of the claimed amount of Rs.1,10,61,418.00. It was stated that the refund claim for the months of August, 1999, September, 1999, May, 2000, September, 2000, November, 2001 and December, 2001 involved amounts of over Rs. 5 lakhs, which required audit clearance. Thus, an amount of Rs.33,09,009.00 (Rs. 1,10,61,418.00 - Rs. 77,52,409.00) was kept pending.

9. The sanctioned amount of Rs. 77,52,409.00 was refunded to the petitioner.

10. Commissioner of Central Excise, Dibrugarh preferred appeal against the aforesaid order dated 05-08-2005. The appellate authority i.e. Commissioner (Appeals), by order dated 31-01-2006 rejected the appeal and upheld the order dated 05-08-2005.

11. Revenue thereafter preferred second appeal before the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Kolkata (CESTAT). However, CESTAT by order dated 21-06-2011 dismissed the appeal filed by the Revenue.

12. Against order of CESTAT, Revenue filed further appeal before this Court, which was registered as C.Ex. Appeal No. 5/2011. This Court by order dated 19-12-2011 dismissed the appeal holding that no substantial question of law arose in the appeal.

13. In spite of such orders of the appellate authorities rejecting the appeals filed by the Revenue, the balance amount of Rs.33,09,009.00 was not refunded to the petitioner. Petitioner, therefore, filed the related writ petition seeki

















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