Refund claim under wrong notification citation should be examined on the correct exemption basis, not rejected outright.

A refund claim should not be rejected solely because it cited the wrong exemption notification where the correct notification was otherwise identifiable from the assessee's submissions. The claim ought to be examined on the proper legal basis, especially when no show-cause notice was issued and no personal hearing was granted, since the claimant was denied an opportunity to correct the error. The matter was remanded for fresh consideration of refund eligibility under the correct notification on merits, while any claim for interest for the intervening period was excluded.

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Issues: Whether a refund claim wrongly mentioned under one service tax exemption notification could be examined and allowed under the correct notification, and whether rejection of the claim without notice and personal hearing was sustainable.

Analysis: The refund claim was admittedly filed under the wrong notification number, but the assessee had consistently stated that the correct notification applicable to commission agent services was the other notification. No show-cause notice was issued before rejection and no personal hearing was granted, depriving the assessee of an opportunity to correct the mistake. In these circumstances, the authorities below ought to have examined the claim on the correct legal basis instead of rejecting it solely for the mistaken citation. The proper course was to treat the claim as one made under the correct notification and test eligibility on merits, excluding any claim for interest for the intervening period.

Conclusion: The rejection based on the wrong notification citation was unsustainable, and the matter was remanded for fresh examination of the refund claim under the correct notification.

Final Conclusion: The assessee obtained a fresh opportunity to establish refund entitlement on the correct exemption basis, but without any entitlement to interest for the intervening period.

Ratio Decidendi: A refund claim should not be rejected merely for mistaken mention of a notification number when the correct exempting notification is otherwise identifiable and the claimant was denied an opportunity to rectify the error.

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