Patna High Court Upholds CENVAT Credit On Captive Power Plant Despite Surplus Power Supply

The Patna High Court on 24 July dismissed the Central Excise Department's appeal against Harinagar Sugar Mills Ltd. and upheld the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal's (CESTAT) order allowing the company to claim CENVAT credit on capital goods, input services and iron and steel items used in its manufacturing operations. A Division Bench of Justices Bibek Chaudhuri and Rana Vikram Singh held that the benefit cannot be denied merely because part of the electricity generated in...

CESTAT Bangalore Allows ACC CENVAT Credit On Fly Ash Transport And Pond Maintenance Services

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Bangalore has ruled in favour of ACC Ltd., holding that the cement manufacturer cannot be denied CENVAT credit on services used to maintain a fly ash pond and transport fly ash to its factory merely because those services were rendered outside the factory premises.It noted that the services were used to bring an essential raw material to the factory for manufacturing and threfore outside taxability. "We find that admittedly there...

Nicotine Sulphate Not Tobacco Product, Examiner Can't Decide Tariff Classification: CESTAT Ahmedabad

The Ahmedabad Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 29 July held that Nicotine Sulphate falls under Tariff Heading 29399900 as a vegetable alkaloid and not under Tariff Heading 24039990 as a tobacco product. It clarified that a chemical examiner can only provide analytical findings and cannot determine the tariff classification of a product. A Bench of Judicial Member Dr. Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha and Technical Member Satendra Vikram Singh set aside the excise duty demand...

Extended Limitation Cannot Be Invoked For Non Disclosure Of Facts Not Required By Law: CESTAT Ahmedabad

The Ahmedabad Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 27 July held that the extended limitation period under Section 11A(4) of the Central Excise Act, 1944 (which permits recovery beyond the normal limitation period in cases involving fraud, suppression of facts or wilful misstatement) cannot be invoked where the law did not require a taxpayer to disclose the information allegedly suppressed. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Dr. Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha allowed Polychem...

CESTAT Kolkata Quashes ₹7.06 Crore Excise Demand, Says PSU Appellant Cannot Be Alleged To Have Acted Mala Fide

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Kolkata has set aside a ₹7.06 crore central excise demand against public sector undertaking Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd., observing that the appellant, being a PSU, could not be alleged to have acted with mala fide intent to clear goods clandestinely.A coram of Judicial Member Ashok Jindal and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan observed, "Further, the appellant being a public sector undertaking, we are of the opinion that the appellant...

CENVAT Credit Not Available On DEPB Scrip-Based Duty Payment Before 31 August 2004: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court on 23 July held that CENVAT credit cannot be claimed on additional customs duty adjusted through DEPB scrips for imports made before 31 August 2004, as such credit was available only where the duty was paid in cash. A Division Bench of Justices G. Jayachandran and N. Mala allowed the Revenue's appeal against Computer Graphics Ltd, holding that the taxpayer was not entitled to CENVAT credit on duty discharged through DEPB scrips and upholding the extended limitation period,...

Supreme Court Upholds Excise Duty On Pharmaceutical Samples Removed For Testing Over Record-Keeping Lapse

The Supreme Court has held that a taxpayer who fails to maintain the prescribed records for pharmaceutical samples removed for testing cannot avoid excise duty by contending that the goods had not attained marketability.It upheld the excise duty demand against Hicure Pharmaceuticals Pvt. Ltd.A bench of Justice K.V. Viswanathan and Justice Arun Palli applied its earlier decision in ITC Ltd. v. Collector of Central Excise to the facts of the case. Referring to that ruling, the bench observed, "It...

No Cenvat Credit Reversal On Sulphuric Acid Supplied Duty-Free To Fertilizer Manufacturers: CESTAT Hyderabad

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Hyderabad, has held that manufacturers are not required to reverse Cenvat credit on Sulphuric Acid supplied to fertilizer manufacturers without payment of excise duty under a conditional government notification. The tribunal held that such supplies cannot automatically be treated as "exempted goods" merely because no duty was paid on them. The tribunal observed that the product remained dutiable. It said the exemption was...

Gujarat High Court Quashes ₹41.53 Cr Excise Notice Against Jindal Saw, Backs Finality Of HPC Certificates

The Gujarat High Court on 15 July quashed a Rs. 41.53 crore central excise recovery notice issued to Jindal Saw Ltd., holding that the Commissioner of Central Excise had no jurisdiction to question eligibility certificates issued by the High Powered Committee under the exemption notification. A Division Bench of Justices A.S. Supehia and Vaibhavi D. Nanavati held that allegations of fraud or misrepresentation in obtaining such certificates could only be examined by the statutory committee that...

Madras High Court Directs SVLDRS Relief To SB Aditya Power Projects In CENVAT Credit Dispute

The Madras High Court on 25 June held that authorities cannot reject a CENVAT credit claim on a ground that was not raised in the original show cause notice, and set aside the order denying credit under the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme (SVLDRS). Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy allowed the petition filed by SB Aditya Power Projects and directed the Designated Committee to reconsider the declaration and issue the discharge certificate after taking into account the Court's...

Excise Evasion Prosecution Cannot Rest Solely On Departmental Proceedings: Himachal Pradesh High Court

The Himachal Pradesh High Court on 7 July held that criminal prosecution for alleged evasion of central excise duty cannot continue merely on the basis of departmental proceedings, show cause notices or penalty orders, unless independent evidence establishes the alleged evasion. Justice Rakesh Kainthla dismissed the revision petition filed by the Excise Department and upheld the trial court's order discharging Seamx Industries and its directors from the criminal case alleging evasion of central...

CESTAT Chennai Allows Hindustan Unilever Excise Refund, Holds CA Certificate Rebuts Unjust Enrichment

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Chennai, has allowed Hindustan Unilever Ltd.'s refund claims arising from the finalisation of provisional assessments. It found that the company had established, through a Chartered Accountant's certificate, that the excess excise duty had not been passed on to customers. The tribunal held that the refund claims were therefore not barred by the doctrine of unjust enrichment. A coram of Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical...