M.S.Liberhan, J.

1. This order of ours shall dispose of Civil Writ Petition Nos. 11654,11655,11656,11657,12309,12310,12579,12664 and 13056 of 1989. Since the material facts are common and so are questions of law raised in these petitions, it can be fairly recorded that the petitions raise common questions of law.

2. It is expedient to collate the facts leading up to these Writ Petitions. The facts have been taken from Civil Writ Petition No. 11654 of 1989. Vanaspati is an excisable item. The petitioners are its manufacturers. It can be manufactured by hydrogenation of vegetable oil and subjecting them to various other processes like neutralising, bleaching and deodorisation etc. The oils used in this process are known as traditional oils in the trade and it is so understood by the persons in the trade. The manufacturer of Vanaspati can also use for its manufacture the minor oils like Rice Bran Oil, Mahua Oil, Water-melon seed Oil, Solvent extracted cottonseed Oil etc. They are known as non-traditional oils in the trade amongst the manufacturers and the persons dealing with Vanaspati. Utilising the non- traditional oils for the manufacture of Vanaspati is a time consuming and costlier process, than its manufacture by hydrogenation of traditional oils.

3. The Union of India with an object to cut the import of excisable oils, to save the foreign exchange, to encourage the utilisation, or consumption of indigenously available non-traditional oils and to make it feasible as well as financially viable for the manufacture of Vanaspati and further to allure the manufacturers of Vanaspati to utilise the same for its manufacture, and with a further object of granting incentive for the greater production of non-traditional oils in the country, granted various concessions from excise duty and also in other excisable goods. The Central Government introduced a scheme granting concession from excise duty on the use of the non-traditional oils in the manufacture of Vanaspati and other excisable articles. The scheme proposing the excise concession on the Vanaspati and other articles for the use of various non-traditional oils, was issued on March 1,1987 and the items were specified.

4. The Notification was issued under Rule 57-K of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules). The vegetable oils listed in the Notification, for the production of the Vanaspati, conferring a right to concession from excise, were defined as inputs. Under the Scheme the manufacturer of the final product of Vanaspati earned credit of money at the rates specified, for concession in the excise duty, for the use of inputs. The manufacturers were entitled to the stipulated credit subject to the conditions, (i) that the credit was to be taken only in respect of the quantity of oil subjected to hydrogenation on or after March 1,1987 for the manufacture of final product; (ii) the credit was to be taken only on the date on which the specified oils entitled to concession were so hydrogenated; and (iii) the accounting period for such credit was a month. Further under the Scheme, the manufacturer could utilise the credit earned in any calendar month only in the next succeeding month. The credit could be utilised by adjustment against the payment of excise duty on the final product and that too at a specified rate. A ceiling was put on the amount of credit to be utilised for payment of excise duty on any individual clearance of the final products, it was not to exceed Rs. 1,000/- per metric tonne of vegetable products cleared. It was provided that the manufacturer shall not be entitled to the refund or adjustment against payment of excise duty on any item other than the final product nor it could be utilised for payment of excise duty on any other excisable goods under any circumstances. It was made incumbent for the manufacturer to produce a certificate within five months from the taking of credit or such extended period from the Deputy Directo