Change of company name does not defeat Cenvat credit transfer when the legal identity remains the same.

Where only the company's name changes and its constitution remains the same, transfer of unutilised Cenvat credit is legally permissible under Rule 9 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004. On that basis, the assessee's claim to carry forward the credit from the erstwhile name was accepted, and the Revenue's challenge on penalty did not survive.

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Issues: Whether Cenvat credit standing in the account of the erstwhile company could be transferred to the assessee after the change in the company's name, and whether the Revenue's appeal seeking specification of penalty survived.

Analysis: The company's constitution remained unchanged and only its name stood altered. On that basis, the transfer of unutilised Cenvat credit from the erstwhile name to the new name was held to be legally permissible under Rule 9 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004. The Revenue's appeal on penalty did not succeed in view of the acceptance of the assessee's case.

Conclusion: Transfer of the Cenvat credit was held permissible and the assessee's appeal was allowed; the Revenue's appeal was rejected.

Final Conclusion: The credit transfer was upheld on the footing that the legal identity of the company did not change with the change of name, and the Revenue obtained no relief.

Ratio Decidendi: Where only the name of a company changes and its constitution remains the same, transfer of unutilised Cenvat credit is permissible in law.

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