Cenvat credit documentation requires the prescribed invoice copy; photocopies or extra copies cannot support the claim.

Cenvat/Modvat credit was admissible only on the invoice copy prescribed by the credit rules, and where the duplicate copy was lost, only the original invoice could be used in the limited manner permitted by those rules. A photocopy or extra copy, including a purported certified copy, did not satisfy the statutory documentation requirement because the Evidence Act could not override the specific fiscal scheme. Credit on such unsupported documents was therefore not admissible, and disallowance of credit was restored.

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Issues: Whether Cenvat/Modvat credit can be availed on the basis of a photocopy or extra copy of an invoice, including a purported certified copy, when the rules contemplate credit on specified invoice copies and, in limited cases, on the original invoice if the duplicate is lost.

Analysis: The credit scheme required the claimant to rely on the prescribed invoice copy evidencing duty-paid inputs. The scheme under the erstwhile Central Excise Rules, 1944 treated the duplicate copy meant for the transporter as the relevant document for credit, and only where that copy was lost could credit be claimed on the original invoice in the manner permitted by the rules. A photocopy of an extra copy did not satisfy that statutory requirement. The references to certified copies under the Evidence Act did not override the specific fiscal rules governing availment of credit. The Tribunal also relied on prior authority and the departmental circular stating that photocopies could not be accepted for credit purposes.

Conclusion: Credit on the basis of a photocopy or extra copy of the invoice was not admissible. The challenge by the Revenue succeeded and the disallowance of credit was restored.

Final Conclusion: The order allowing credit was set aside, and the original adjudication denying Modvat/Cenvat credit stood restored.

Ratio Decidendi: Where fiscal credit is conditioned on specified invoice documentation, the prescribed document must be produced in the manner required by the rules, and a photocopy or other substitute not authorised by the scheme cannot found a valid claim for credit.

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