Motor spirit classification failed where Revenue did not prove technical parameters by proper scientific testing.

Classification of excisable goods as motor spirit under sub-heading 2710.13 depended on proof of the required technical parameters, including flash point below 25 C and suitability for use in spark ignition engines. The Revenue bore the burden of establishing those parameters by proper scientific testing, but it relied mainly on the appellants' laboratory register and statements without obtaining an independent chemical test of the disputed goods. In the absence of scientific verification, the adjudication rested on opinion rather than proof, and the classification as motor spirit could not be sustained.

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Issues: Whether the product manufactured by the appellants was classifiable under sub-heading 2710.13 as motor spirit.

Analysis: The onus to establish classification as motor spirit lay on the Revenue. The department did not obtain an independent chemical test of the disputed goods and relied mainly on the appellants' laboratory register and statements. The record did not establish the essential requirements for motor spirit, namely the flash point below 25 C and suitability for use in spark ignition engines. In the absence of proper scientific verification, the adjudication was based on opinion rather than proof.

Conclusion: The goods were not proved to be motor spirit, and the classification adopted by the adjudicating authority could not be sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: Where classification of excisable goods depends on technical parameters, the Revenue must prove those parameters by proper scientific testing and cannot rely solely on collateral evidence or opinion.

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