FINAL ORDER NO. 51419/2026

DR. RACHNA GUPTA

The present appeal is filed to assail the order in Appeal No. 26-25- 2026, dated 16-04-2025. The facts and brief which culminated into the said order are as follows.

Bhagwati Traders, Apellant, being the trader of iron and steel, was engaged in trading activity of TMT/ CTD bar and cements, etc. Department got an intelligence that the appellant was receiving the goods without invoices and without payment of central excise duty. Accordingly, the premises of appellant were visited by the officers of Central Excise Preventive on 14-02-2013, when the statement of the proprietor of appellant namely shri. Krishna Sahu was got recorded under Section 14 of Central Excise Act, 1944. He acknowledged to have entered all the purchasing details of TMT/CTD bars into a diary. The said diary got seized. On scrutiny thereof, it was noticed that the appellant had purchased TMT/CTD bars from different persons, namely, Shri Rao, Raipur, Maharaj Mishra, Bhilai Raipur, New Balaji, Raipur, Parihar, Raipur; during the period 22.05.2011 to 09.02.2013.

1.1 In his subsequent statement dated 21.02.2013, the appellant acknowledged purchasing the CTD/TMT bars from Shri Rao, Raipur, who is the proprietor of M/s Shri Sai Deva Steels, Raipur, a steel broker in Raipur. Therefore, Rao's premises were also got searched on 18.02.2013, under panchnama of 18.02.2013, drawn in presence of Shri Tirupati Rao, the proprietor of M/s Sai Deva Steels, and one another. A notebook was got seized, showing sale of total 643.195 metric tons, M.T of CTD/TMT bars of different dimensions to different parties during period 09.11.2012 to 11.02.2013. Shri. Tirupati rao vide subsequent statement dated 19-02-2013 again recorded in terms section 14 of Central Excise Act, 1944, stated that mainly the purchases were made from M/s Swastik Rolling Mill, Rawa Bhata, Raipur and he himself acted only as the broker who used to get Rs.100 per MT as commission. Statement of Ghasiram Sahu, the driver of the appellant, was also got recorded on 21-02-2013.

1.2. Based on the aforesaid statements and the diary obtained from Shri. Krishna Kumar Sahu the proprietor of appellant and the bill book/notepad obtained from Shri. Tirupathi Rao, proprietor of M/s Sai deva Steel, Raipur it appeared to the department that the details of purchase/sale of TMT CTD bars as found entered in the manner clarified that the goods sold/purchased have been removed without issue of sales invoices and without payment of duty by M/s Swastik Steels, Raipur. The total 901.155 MT of CTD/TMT bars valued at Rs. 30632513 was observed to have been cleared by M/s Swastik traders to the appellant without issuing central excise invoices and without payment of central excise duty. It was also found that the stock declared by M/s Swastik with the actual stock of CTD/TMT bars, 118.938 MT of CTD/TMT bars and of 65.027 MT ton of scrap was short. With these observations that the Show Cause Notice no. 17/2012-13/P dated 08-01-2016 was served upon the four co-noticees, namely M/s Swastik Steels, its partner Shri. Suresh Agarwal, Shri Krishna Sahu, the proprietor of the appellant, and Shri Tirupati Rao, the proprietor of M/s Sai Deva Steels. The Central Excise duty amounting to Rs. 37, 86,178/- with respect to 901.155 MT of CTD/TMT bars and excise duty of Rs. 6, 29,452/- on the shortages, stocks of 118.938 metric tons of CTD/TMT bars and 65.027 MT scrap was proposed to be recovered along with the interest at the appropriate rates in terms of Section 11AA of Central Excise Act, 1944 read with Rule 14 of Cenvat Credit Rule 204. The mandatory penalty in terms of Section 11AC(1)(c) of Central Excise Act, 1944 was proposed. The penalty under Rule 26 of Central Excise Rule, 2002 was also proposed to be imposed on remaining three co-noticees including the appellant. The said proposal has been confirmed wide Order-in-Original, O-I-O number 28/2024-25 dated 31-7-2024. Appeal against the said order has been reje