MS Frame Parts, Tanks Built To Customer Drawings Not Articles of Iron & Steel; CESTAT Ahmedabad Sets Aside Excise Duty Demand

The Ahmedabad Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that MS frame parts, gland plates and MS tanks manufactured as per buyer-specific drawings for use in transformers cannot be treated as general articles of iron and steel. The Tribunal set aside the demand for differential excise duty of Rs.3.69 lakhs raised against Gayatri Engineering, along with interest and penalty.A coram of Judicial Member Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha and Technical Member...

Ready Rotis Classifiable as Bread, Not Ready-To-Eat Food; CESTAT Grants Nil Excise Duty

The New Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that “Ready Roti/Halka Fulka” manufactured by Ready Roti India Pvt. Ltd. is classifiable as bread and not as packaged or instant food, and is therefore chargeable to a nil rate of excise duty. The bench of Judicial Member Ajay Sharma and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao was dealing with an appeal against an order upholding excise duty demand, interest and penalty on the allegation that the appellant...

Bought-Out Optional Plywood Tops Value Not Includible In Excise Duty on Folding Cots: CESTAT Kolkata

In partial relief to Shree Durga Industry, the Kolkata Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that while fabrication of steel folding cots amounts to “manufacture” under the Central Excise Act, the value of optional plywood tops procured from the open market cannot be added to the assessable value for levy of excise duty. The bench of Judicial Member R. Muralidhar and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan was hearing appeals filed by Shree Durga Industry and...

Housekeeping, Manpower Services Eligible For CENVAT Credit Post-2011: CESTAT Chennai

The Chennai Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 23 February held that CENVAT credit on services such as housekeeping, gardening, pest control, manpower supply, and business membership cannot be denied merely due to the post-2011 amendment, so long as the services have a clear connection with manufacturing or business activity. A Bench comprising Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao was hearing an appeal filed by Cetax...

Pre-Adjudication Amount Paid Under Protest Is Deposit, Not Duty; CESTAT Allahabad Grants 12% Interest From Deposit

The Allahabad Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that, in the facts of the case, an amount paid under protest during investigation, before any adjudication or confirmed demand, cannot be treated as “duty” but only as a deposit. It ruled that interest on such a refund is payable at 12% per annum from the date of deposit till the date of actual refund. The order was passed by Judicial Member P.K. Choudhary while allowing the appeal filed by T T...

Allegations Of Clandestine Removal Cannot Rely On Unauthenticated Evidence: CESTAT Chennai

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that allegations of clandestine manufacture and removal cannot be sustained in the absence of legally admissible electronic evidence and a complete chain of corroborative material. A Bench of Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao on 4 February 4, allowed the appeals filed by the Umashankar Alloys Pvt. Ltd., its Managing Director and Manager, and quashed the duty demand of...

CESTAT Mumbai Allows Lombardini ₹56 Lakh CENVAT Credit, Holds It Can't Be Denied When Tax Is Accepted

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 5 February allowed Lombardini India to claim CENVAT credit of Rs. 56 lakhs in a case where it had entered into an agreement with Kohler India for certain services. A Bench comprising Judicial Member S.K. Mohanty and Technical Member M.M. Parthiban observed that once service tax has been collected by the service provider and accepted by the Department, the credit cannot be denied to the recipient. They held: ...

CENVAT Credit Not Available On Canteen, Sodexo Services Provided To Employees Post 2011: CESTAT Chennai

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has ruled that companies cannot claim CENVAT credit on employee welfare services after April 1, 2011, following a statutory amendment that expressly excluded such benefits. A coram of Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao was deciding appeals filed by GE T&D India Ltd., a manufacturer of electrical and transmission equipment. The dispute covered April 2010 to March 2015. The...

CESTAT Chennai Holds Cashew Shell Liquid Eligible For SSI Exemption, Sets Aside ₹3.22 Lakh Excise Demand

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that Cashew Shell Liquid (CNSL) is eligible for Small Scale Industry (SSI) exemption under Notification No. 8/2003-CE, as amended in 2006 and read with the Corrigendum dated February 28, 2006. The tribunal set aside a Rs. 3.22 lakh excise duty demand raised on the manufacturer for allegedly wrongfully availing SSI exemption on CNSL clearances.The notification provides central excise exemption to...

CESTAT Mumbai Remands CENVAT Credit Refund Claim Of Software Exporter For Fresh Adjudication

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has allowed the Revenue's appeal and set aside an order granting a refund of unutilised CENVAT credit to Physician Interactive India Pvt. Ltd. The Tribunal has remanded the matter to the original adjudicating authority for fresh consideration. A Bench of Judicial Member S.K. Mohanty and Technical Member M.M. Parthiban held that the Commissioner (Appeals) failed to examine key factual issues bearing on the...

Electricity Supplied To State Board Not Eligible For CENVAT Credit: CESTAT Chandigarh

The Chandigarh Bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that a manufacturer is not entitled to CENVAT credit on fuel used to generate electricity that is wholly supplied to the State Electricity Board (SEB), even if an equivalent quantity of power is later received back through a synchronisation arrangement. A Bench of Judicial Member S.S. Garg and Technical Member P. Anjani Kumar observed that since the electricity generated using the inputs was...

CESTAT Delhi Quashes Excise Demand Alleging Clandestine Production Based Solely On Electricity Consumption

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has set aside a central excise demand against a supari manufacturer, holding that alleged clandestine manufacture and removal could not be sustained in this case when the department relied only on electricity consumption. A bench of President Justice Dilip Gupta and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao rejected the department's approach, observing: “We are unable to accept this submission of the department. In our view, all that the...