Per Jyoti Balasundaram : The revenue is in appeal against the order of the Commissioner (Appeals), by which he has held that the respondents herein are eligible to the benefit of exemption from payment of duty on "cover paper" cleared to M/s. Nikhil Offset for supply to UNICEF project, in terms of Notification No. 108/95-CE dated 28/08/95. According to the revenue, since the notification provided that before clearance of the goods to United Nations or an international organisation for their official use or for supply to the projects financed by the UN or an international organisation and approved by the Government of India, the manufacturer should produce before the jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner, a certificate from the UN or an international organisation regarding the fact that the goods are intended for official use by UN or an international organisation or for supply to the project as above, the certificate should have been in the name of the respondents themselves and certificate in favour of Nikhil Offset, who is not the claimant to the notification, is not sufficient for the purpose of holding that the condition of the notification has been satisfied.

2. Ld. Counsel on the other hand takes us to the notification and submits that all that is required to be seen is only whether the goods are intended for official use either by the UN or an international organisation for their official use or goods are to be supplied to the project financed by the UN or the said international organisation and the project has been approved by the Government of India.

3. We have carefully considered rival submissions. We find that plea raised by the revenue and language of notification lends itself to the view proposed in the appeal namely, that not only the goods have been intended for official use by UN or an international organisation but it is the manufacturer seeking benefit of exemption under particular notification, who should have the certificate issued to it by the authority prescribed under the notification, before claiming the benefit thereof. We, therefore, hold that the benefit of the notification is not available to the respondents and therefore they are liable to pay the duty of Rs. 47,028/- for the clearances of paper cover during the period in dispute. We, further, hold that there is no ground for imposition of penalty on the respondents.

4. The appeal is thus partly allowed.