Exemption notification interpretation favours assessee where "duty payable" is tied to assessment, not raw material purchase.

Under an excise exemption notification for set-off on copper pipes and tubes, the phrase "duty payable" in the second paragraph was construed to mean the duty payable at the time of assessment and grant of exemption, not the duty payable when crude copper was originally purchased. The text of the notification used different wording in its two paragraphs, indicating different operative bases, and the second paragraph was aimed at avoiding difficulty in tracing the duty history of market-purchased crude copper. As two interpretations were possible, the construction favourable to the assessee was adopted, and the demand based on the Department's view could not stand.

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Issues: Whether, under the exemption notification governing set-off for copper pipes and tubes, the expression "duty payable" in the second paragraph referred to the duty payable on the date of purchase of crude copper from the market or the duty payable at the time when the finished goods were assessed for clearance.

Analysis: The notification used different phraseology in its two paragraphs, namely "duty already paid" in the first and "duty payable" in the second, showing that the two situations were intended to operate on different bases. The second paragraph was intended to avoid practical difficulty in tracing the actual duty history of market-purchased crude copper. The relevant time for applying an exemption notification under central excise law is the time when the excisable goods are assessed for clearance, and not the date when the raw material was purchased. Reading the expression in that context, the words "duty payable" could only mean the duty payable at the time of granting the exemption or set-off. Since two interpretations were possible, the one favourable to the assessee was also required to be preferred.

Conclusion: The expression "duty payable" in the second paragraph meant the duty payable on the date of grant of exemption or set-off, not the date of purchase of crude copper. The issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

Final Conclusion: The demand based on the Department's interpretation could not stand, and the appeal succeeded with consequential relief.

Ratio Decidendi: In interpreting a taxing exemption notification, where the relevant expression is used in a context connected with assessment and clearance, the meaning must be tied to the time of assessment, and any genuine ambiguity must be resolved in favour of the assessee.

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