Battery separator classification: roll form alone does not defeat exemption where intended use as separator is undisputed.

Imported battery separator material remained classifiable under Heading 8507 90 90 where its intended use as a battery separator was undisputed, even though it was imported in roll form and had to be cut before use. The Tribunal applied its earlier ruling on similar goods, which had been affirmed on merits by the apex court, and treated the form of import as irrelevant to classification on these facts. The corresponding customs exemption under Notification No. 21/2002-Cus., as amended, was therefore available, and denial of the exemption on the ground of roll form was rejected.

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Issues: Whether imported battery separator material, cleared in roll form, was classifiable under Heading 8507 90 90 and entitled to exemption under Notification No. 21/2002-Cus. dated 01.03.2002 as amended by Notification No. 11/2005-Cus. dated 01.03.2005, or was classifiable under Heading 7019 32 00 so as to deny the exemption.

Analysis: The intended use of the imported material as battery separator was not in dispute. The dispute turned only on the form of import, namely that the material was imported in roll form and had to be cut before use. The Tribunal found the controversy to be squarely covered by its earlier decision on similar goods, which had been affirmed on merits by the apex court. The same reasoning applied because the material issue was the form of import and not the intended use, and the imported goods remained battery separator material for classification purposes.

Conclusion: The goods were held classifiable under Heading 8507 90 90 and eligible for the benefit of the relevant customs exemption notification. Denial of the exemption on the ground that the goods were imported in roll form was rejected.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the intended use of imported material as battery separator is undisputed, classification cannot be denied merely because the goods are imported in roll form, and the corresponding exemption notification remains available if the material otherwise falls under the claimed heading.

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