Textile cess collection and assessable value under excise law depend on actual payment and pending levy proceedings.

Amounts collected from consumers as textile cess were treated as contingent on the outcome of pending proceedings before the Textile Appellate Tribunal. The matter was remitted to the adjudicating authority to reconsider liability after those proceedings, rather than being finally decided on merits. It was also noted that exclusion from assessable value under Section 4 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 applies only where the tax or cess collected has actually been paid; if collection has occurred without payment, the valuation issue may still remain open depending on the result of the textile-levy dispute.

---

---

Issues: Whether the dispute concerning the amount collected from consumers towards textile cess and its liability to be deposited with the Excise Department should await the result of proceedings before the Textile Appellate Tribunal, and whether such collected amount could affect assessable value under the Central Excise law.

Analysis: The matter involved a live controversy before the Textile Appellate Tribunal on the levy and liability of textile cess. In that situation, it was considered appropriate to remit the matter to the adjudicating authority to keep watch on the outcome of those proceedings and then determine whether the amount was payable to the Excise Department. It was also noted that immunity from inclusion in assessable value under Section 4 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 is available only where tax has been collected and actually paid; if the amount has been collected but not paid, Section 4 may still be attracted depending on the result of the textile proceedings.

Conclusion: The dispute was remitted to the adjudicating authority for fresh decision after the outcome of the proceedings before the Textile Tribunal.

Final Conclusion: The controversy was not finally resolved on merits and was sent back for decision in light of the pending textile-levy proceedings.

Ratio Decidendi: An amount collected as tax or cess may be excluded from assessable value only when it is actually paid; where payment remains unresolved, the valuation issue can be reconsidered after the outcome of the related levy proceedings.

---