Delayed clearance under Rule 173H without prior permission invalidated compliance and sustained the central excise demand.

Clearance of excisable goods beyond six months from receipt in the factory required prior permission under Rule 173H of the Central Excise Rules, 1944. Where goods received on 15-12-1991 were cleared only on 17-6-1992 without such permission, the statutory condition for delayed clearance was not met. The text states that the demand based on this non-compliance was therefore not vitiated by any legal infirmity.

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Issues: Whether clearance of goods beyond six months from the date of receipt without prior permission under Rule 173H of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 was valid and whether the demand confirmed on that basis was sustainable.

Analysis: The goods were received in the factory on 15-12-1991 and cleared only on 17-6-1992, beyond the six-month period prescribed in Rule 173H of the Central Excise Rules, 1944. The rule required prior permission from the competent authority for such delayed clearance. Since no such permission had been obtained, the clearance did not satisfy the statutory condition and the demand could not be said to suffer from any legal infirmity.

Conclusion: The demand was upheld and the appeal was dismissed.

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