Court reduces pre-deposit condition, directs 10% penalty deposit within 6 weeks

The Court modified the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal's order, reducing the pre-deposit condition from 20% to 10% due to a subsequent notification and the appellant director's admissions. The appellant was required to deposit 10% of the penalty within six weeks to meet the revised condition. Consequently, the appeals were allowed on the revised terms, and pending applications were disposed of accordingly, with the Court directing the provision of a copy of the order through dasti.

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Issues:
Challenge to the onerous and excessive pre-deposit condition set by the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT).

Analysis:
The appellant raised concerns regarding the pre-deposit condition imposed by CESTAT, arguing it to be burdensome. The appellant's counsel highlighted a subsequent notification stating that a deposit of 7.5% of the demand would suffice to meet the pre-deposit requirement. On the other hand, the Revenue's counsel contended that, based on the case's facts and the appellant director's statements, no relief was justified.

The Court acknowledged that the notification reducing the pre-deposit to 7.5% was issued shortly after the appeal was filed. Considering this, along with the director's admissions of forgery, the Court found it appropriate to reduce the pre-deposit amount to 10% instead of the initial 20%. Consequently, the Court modified the CESTAT's order, deeming the pre-deposit condition met if the appellant deposited 10% of the penalty within six weeks.

As a result of the above analysis, the appeals were allowed on the revised terms, and any pending applications were disposed of accordingly. The Court directed the provision of a copy of the order through dasti.

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