Tribunal denies waiver & stay request due to prior appropriation; appeal filed with Commissioner (Appeals) pending.

The Tribunal dismissed the application for waiver and stay of recovery of the interest amount demanded from the appellant, as the amount had already been appropriated towards other arrears of revenue per a previous order, currently under challenge before the Commissioner (Appeals) without a stay on its operation.

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Issues:
1. Waiver and stay of an amount demanded as interest on differential duty for the year 2002-03.

Analysis:
The appellant filed an application seeking waiver and stay of an amount of Rs. 5,14,846/- demanded from them as interest on differential duty for the year 2002-03. The appellant had paid duty on a provisional basis for the said period as the exact amount of duty was not initially available. Upon obtaining the necessary information, the appellant communicated the same to the assessing authority for finalization of the provisional assessments. Before the assessing officer could finalize the assessments, the appellant suo motu calculated the final amount of duty and paid the differential amount, which was communicated to the assessing officer. The assessing officer finalized the provisional assessments on 31.12.2010, resulting in a demand for interest of Rs. 5,14,846/- on the paid differential duty, as per Section 11AB of the Central Excise Act.

The Tribunal, after hearing both sides, did not find a prima facie case against the demand for interest. The appellant pointed out that the demanded interest amount had been appropriated towards other arrears of revenue as per an Order-in-Original dated 1.10.2012. The appellant also mentioned that the said order was under challenge before the Commissioner (Appeals) but its operation had not been stayed. These submissions were not contested before the Tribunal. In light of the above scenario, the Tribunal found the application for waiver of pre-deposit and stay of recovery regarding the interest amount to be infructuous and dismissed it accordingly.

In conclusion, the Tribunal dismissed the application for waiver and stay of recovery in respect of the interest amount demanded from the appellant, as the said amount had already been appropriated towards other arrears of revenue as per a previous order, which was presently under challenge before the Commissioner (Appeals) without any stay on its operation.

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