Statutory refund of amounts collected without authority of law requires proper adjudication when payment is made under protest.

Amounts collected without authority of law, especially where payment was made under protest, should ordinarily be examined under the statutory refund mechanism rather than retained without lawful justification. The text states that the refund claim had been made promptly and that the levy appeared prima facie unauthorized, so the Department was required to consider the claim with reference to Section 27 of the Customs Act, 1962. The refund question was not decided on merits; the matter was remitted for fresh adjudication in accordance with law, and the impugned order was set aside.

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Issues: Whether a cess alleged to have been collected without authority of law, and paid under protest, could be retained by the Department without examining the refund claim under Section 27 of the Customs Act, 1962.

Analysis: The levy was treated as prima facie unauthorized, and the claim was stated to have been made promptly after payment. The order emphasized that an amount collected illegally should ordinarily be restored to the payer, and that the refund claim required consideration with reference to the statutory framework governing refund when payment is made under protest. The matter was therefore sent back for proper adjudication on whether the Department could lawfully retain the amount.

Conclusion: The refund issue was not finally decided on merits and was remitted to the lower authority for reconsideration in accordance with law.

Final Conclusion: The impugned order was set aside and the appellant obtained a fresh consideration of the refund claim before the appellate authority.

Ratio Decidendi: Amounts collected without authority of law, especially when paid under protest, require adjudication under the statutory refund mechanism and cannot be retained without lawful justification.

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