Refund limitation for duty on reprocessed duty-paid goods rejected where claim was filed within the prescribed period.

Refund of duty paid on reprocessed duty-paid goods was held to be within limitation because the claim was filed within six months of payment. The show cause notice itself noted that, under Rule 173H of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, no duty was required on such clearances. On those facts, the time-bar objection failed and the refund claim was treated as admissible.

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Issues: Whether the refund claim for duty paid on reprocessed duty-paid goods was barred by limitation.

Analysis: The goods were cleared after re-processing of duty-paid goods, and the show cause notice itself recorded that under Rule 173H of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, no duty was required to be paid on such clearances. The duty paid on 9-1-1998 was refunded by claim filed on 29-6-1998 within the prescribed period of six months. On these facts, the question of time bar did not arise.

Conclusion: The refund claim was not time-barred and the department's appeal failed.

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