Concessional duty benefits under two notification entries can be claimed in one financial year if conditions are satisfied.

The CESTAT held that the scheme under Serial Nos. 86 and 86(A) of Notification No. 6/2002, as amended by Notification No. 48/2004, permits an assessee to avail both concessional duty rates in the same financial year if the prescribed conditions are met. It applied the earlier ruling in Karanja Industries and the Karnataka High Court decision in West Coast Paper Mills Ltd., and held that condition 14(A) does not prohibit Serial No. 86(A) benefit merely because Serial No. 86 was already claimed. The only restriction was against simultaneous SSI benefits under Notifications No. 8/2003 and 9/2003, which was not involved. The demand, interest, and penalty were set aside.

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Issues: Whether the assessee was entitled to avail the concessional rate of duty under Serial No. 86 of Notification No. 6/2002 for the first 3500 MT of clearances and thereafter avail the further concessional rate under Serial No. 86(A) of the same notification, as amended by Notification No. 48/2004, in the same financial year.

Analysis: The Tribunal followed the earlier decision in Karanja Industries and the ruling of the Karnataka High Court in West Coast Paper Mills Ltd., holding that the scheme of Serial Nos. 86 and 86(A) permits availment of both benefits in the same financial year if the prescribed conditions are satisfied. It was held that condition 14(A) does not bar the assessee from claiming the benefit under Serial No. 86(A) merely because benefit under Serial No. 86 had already been availed, and the only restriction was against availing the SSI benefits under Notifications No. 8/2003 and 9/2003, which was not the case.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to claim both concessional rates in the same financial year, and the demand, interest, and penalty could not be sustained.

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