MRP valuation under section 4A applies to notified footwear even when sold directly and price is marked on the product itself.

Footwear notified under section 4A of the Central Excise Act can be valued on retail sale price basis where the goods satisfy the statutory conditions for MRP valuation. Direct sale by the manufacturer to consumers does not by itself exclude section 4A, and a durable retail price declaration on the footwear itself can amount to sufficient compliance even if the price is not printed on the carton, provided the declared price governs sale and the consumer cannot be charged more. On that basis, valuation by normal price is unsustainable where the notified MRP regime applies.

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Issues: Whether footwear notified for valuation under section 4A of the Central Excise Act, 1944 could be assessed on the basis of retail sale price where the goods were sold directly by the manufacturer to consumers and the retail price was indelibly marked on the footwear itself rather than on the package.

Analysis: Section 4A applies where excisable goods are sold in packages, the package is required under the Standards of Weights and Measures law to declare the retail price, and the goods are specified by notification. The governing test, as applied by the Court, is whether the goods satisfy the statutory conditions for retail sale price valuation and whether there is substantive compliance with the declaration requirement. The fact that the manufacturer sold the footwear directly to consumers did not take the goods outside section 4A, because the relevant rules permit sale by a manufacturer and prohibit sale above the declared retail price. The Court also held that marking the retail price on the footwear itself, instead of on the carton, did not defeat the statutory purpose when the price declaration was permanent and the consumer could not be charged more than the marked price.

Conclusion: The footwear remained assessable under section 4A, and the demand and penalty based on normal-price valuation were unsustainable.

Final Conclusion: The appeals succeeded and the impugned order was set aside, with valuation to be governed by retail sale price assessment under the notified MRP regime.

Ratio Decidendi: For goods notified under section 4A, direct retail sale by the manufacturer and a durable retail price declaration on the product itself amount to sufficient compliance if the statutory purpose of preventing sale above the declared retail price is met.

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