Refund of export cess barred by limitation where the claim was not pursued bill-wise and original shipping bills were unavailable.

Refund of cess on shrimp exports was held not maintainable because the claim was not pursued bill-wise within the prescribed time and the original shipping bills were not produced. The Tribunal noted that refund claims must be made in the manner and within the limitation period fixed by law, and that the exporter had been aware of the alleged cess liability earlier but did not keep the claim alive before the adjudicating authority. Difficulty in producing original shipping bills did not override the statutory bar of limitation. The rejection of refund was therefore sustained.

---

---

Issues: Whether the claim for refund of cess on shrimp exports was maintainable when it was not pursued bill-wise within the prescribed time and the original shipping bills were not produced.

Analysis: The refund claim arose from exports made over several years and was sought in respect of 513 shipping bills. The Tribunal noted that a refund claim must be made in the manner prescribed by law and that the appellant had been aware of the alleged cess liability much earlier, yet did not keep the refund claim alive before the adjudicating authority when the shipments were made. The inability to produce original shipping bills was noticed, but that difficulty did not override the statutory bar of limitation governing refund.

Conclusion: The refund claim was barred by limitation and was not maintainable.

Final Conclusion: The appeal failed because the statutory time limit for refund was not complied with, and the order rejecting refund was sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: A refund claim must be pursued in the manner and within the time prescribed by law, and a belated, omnibus claim cannot be entertained merely because the underlying levy is later disputed or original documents are difficult to produce.

---