Countervailing duty turns on separate tariff classification and exemption coverage for imported computers and voltage stabilisers.

For countervailing duty purposes, an imported computer was held chargeable because it was covered by Item 30 of the Central Excise Tariff and was not shown to fall within Notification No. 51/70-C.E., which applied only to specified office machines and apparatus under Item 33D. The imported voltage stabiliser was treated as a separate item in its own right, not merely part of the computer system, and it was not shown to fall under any tariff item at the material time; the exemption notification therefore did not apply. The appeal succeeded only in relation to the voltage stabiliser, while the duty demand on the computer was sustained.

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Issues: (i) whether the imported computer was chargeable to countervailing duty; and (ii) whether the imported voltage stabiliser was chargeable to countervailing duty.

Issue (i): whether the imported computer was chargeable to countervailing duty

Analysis: Computers were covered by Item 30 of the Central Excise Tariff and were not shown to fall within the exemption under Notification No. 51/70-C.E. dated 1-3-1970, which applied to specified office machines and apparatus under Item 33D. As the computer was itself a tariffed excisable item, the exemption did not extend to it.

Conclusion: The computer was correctly held chargeable to countervailing duty.

Issue (ii): whether the imported voltage stabiliser was chargeable to countervailing duty

Analysis: The voltage stabiliser was an item of goods in its own right and could not be classified merely as part of the computer system with which it worked. It was not shown to fall under any tariff item of the Central Excise Tariff at the material time, and the exemption notification was not applicable to it.

Conclusion: The voltage stabiliser was not chargeable to countervailing duty.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded only in respect of the voltage stabiliser, while the demand of countervailing duty on the computer was sustained, resulting in a partial allowance of the appeal.

Ratio Decidendi: For countervailing duty purposes, an imported article must be classified on its own tariff character, and an exemption notification cannot be extended to a separate item unless it is specifically covered by the tariff and the notification.

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