Refund interest under Section 11BB runs from the original application after provisional assessment finalisation.

Interest under Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act was payable from three months after the initial refund application filed under Section 11B(1), where the refund arose from finalisation of provisional assessment. The Court noted that the claim was not a fresh refund application generated for the first time after appellate finalisation, and rejected the Revenue's reliance on a contrary decision as not laying down any rule requiring a post-final adjudication application. On the statutory scheme, the relevant starting point for the interest period remained the original refund claim.

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Issues: Whether, in a case of refund arising from finalisation of provisional assessment, interest under Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, 1944 is payable from the date of the initial refund application under Section 11B(1) or only from a later application made after appellate finalisation.

Analysis: The refund claim had been filed soon after finalisation of the provisional assessment and was not a fresh claim arising for the first time after the appellate order. The Court held that the decision relied on by the Revenue did not lay down any principle that interest could be computed only from an application made after final adjudication by the Tribunal. On the statutory scheme, the relevant starting point for the three-month period under Section 11BB remained the refund application filed under Section 11B(1).

Conclusion: Interest was payable from three months after the initial refund application, and the Revenue's challenge failed.

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