Modvat credit cannot be denied for a technical Rule 57G declaration defect where inputs are otherwise identified.

Modvat credit could not be denied merely because a Rule 57G declaration described brass waste and scrap under one tariff heading while the scrap received was classified under another. The declaration had identified the inputs sufficiently, so the classification mismatch was only a technical defect and not a valid basis for rejection. The amended Rule 57G, together with Notification No. 7/99-C.E. (N.T.) and Circular No. 441/7/99-CX., required incomplete declarations and pending claims to be dealt with without rigid insistence on formal compliance. In light of that amendment, the circular, and precedent, the credit claim had to be accepted.

---

---

Issues: Whether Modvat credit could be denied merely because the declaration under Rule 57G described the inputs as brass waste and scrap under one tariff heading while the scrap received was classified under another heading, and whether the amended Rule 57G and the departmental circular applied to pending cases.

Analysis: The declaration specifically identified the inputs as brass waste and scrap, so a dispute about the correct tariff classification of that scrap did not by itself justify denial of credit. The amendment to Rule 57G introduced by Notification No. 7/99-C.E. (N.T.) and the accompanying Circular No. 441/7/99-CX. stated that credit should not be denied for incomplete particulars in the declaration or for failure to meet other declaration requirements, and the circular directed that pending cases be decided accordingly. In the light of the amendment, the circular, and the applicable precedent, the credit claim could not be rejected on the procedural defect relied upon by the Revenue.

Conclusion: The denial of Modvat credit was unsustainable, and the appeal succeeded.

Ratio Decidendi: Modvat credit cannot be denied on a merely technical defect in the Rule 57G declaration where the inputs are otherwise identified and the amended rule and binding circular require pending claims to be decided without insisting on rigid formal compliance.

---