Special Additional Duty refund upheld where certificate from newly appointed Chartered Accountant satisfied notification requirements.

Refund of Special Additional Duty under Notification No. 102/2007-Cus was found admissible where the supporting certificate was issued by a newly appointed Chartered Accountant. The clarification in CBEC Circular No. 16/2008-Cus was read as excluding certificates from another independent Chartered Accountant for SAD refund purposes, but not as requiring the certificate to be issued by the claimant's earlier or original accountant. On the facts, the new accountant was treated as the regular Chartered Accountant, so the notification conditions were satisfied and the Revenue's objection was rejected.

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Issues: Whether refund of Special Additional Duty under Notification No. 102/2007-Cus was admissible when the certificate was issued by a newly appointed Chartered Accountant and not the earlier one.

Analysis: The refund claim was examined with reference to the conditions of Notification No. 102/2007-Cus and the clarification in CBEC Circular No. 16/2008-Cus. The clarification only rules out a certificate from any other independent Chartered Accountant for SAD refund purposes; it does not stipulate that the certificate must invariably come from the claimant's earlier or original Chartered Accountant. On the facts, the newly appointed Chartered Accountant was treated as the respondent's regular Chartered Accountant and not as a one-time independent certifier. The refund sanction was therefore held to satisfy the notification requirements.

Conclusion: The refund was held admissible and the Revenue's objection to the Chartered Accountant certificate was rejected.

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