Refund claims cannot be denied for missing records when the Department delays processing beyond a reasonable period.

A refund claim should not be rejected merely for want of documents or alleged non-compliance with job-work procedure when the Department has kept the claim pending for an inordinate period. The prescribed refund-processing instructions require prompt scrutiny of incomplete claims and do not permit prolonged inaction followed by late insistence on records. Where verification becomes difficult because the claim was left undecided for years, procedural deficiencies cannot fairly be used to defeat refund eligibility. The rejection was set aside and the matter remanded for fresh decision in accordance with law, with directions not to treat non-availability of documents as a standalone ground for denial.

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Issues: Whether the refund claim could be rejected for want of documents and non-compliance with the job-work procedure, when the claim remained pending for an inordinate period.

Analysis: The refund application was kept pending for more than five years, and the demand for additional particulars and records was raised only much later. The departmental circular governing refund processing required quick scrutiny and disposal of incomplete claims, and did not permit claims to be kept pending beyond a reasonable period. In such circumstances, the absence of some documents or the inability to verify every detail after a long lapse of time could not fairly be used against the applicant. The rejection on the ground of insufficiency of records was therefore found to be unjust and contrary to the prescribed refund procedure.

Conclusion: The refund rejection was set aside and the matter was remanded. The lower authority was directed not to treat non-availability of documents as a ground for rejection and to decide the refund eligibility in accordance with law.

Ratio Decidendi: A refund claim cannot be denied merely for want of records when the Department itself has allowed the claim to remain pending for an inordinate period in breach of the prescribed refund-processing instructions; procedural deficiencies must be dealt with promptly and fairly.

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