Transit damage discount deductible from excise assessable value when established trade practice is disclosed before removal.

A discount given to wholesale buyers for transit damage was held deductible from assessable value for excise duty where it was disclosed in the price list, shown to be a longstanding trade practice, and known to buyers before removal of goods. A written agreement was not essential once the commercial practice was otherwise established. The issue was treated as covered by the assessee's prior case, and the duty demand was therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether discount allowed to wholesale buyers for damage to goods suffered in transit could be deducted while computing assessable value for excise duty purposes.

Analysis: The discount was disclosed in the price list and was shown to be followed as a normal trade practice for many years. A written agreement was not indispensable where the discount was otherwise established as a matter of commercial practice known to the wholesale buyers before removal of the goods. The issue was also treated as covered by the prior decision in the assessee's own case.

Conclusion: The deduction was allowable and the duty demand was unsustainable.

Ratio Decidendi: A discount given to wholesale buyers for transit damage, if shown to be part of an established trade practice and disclosed before removal of goods, is deductible from assessable value even in the absence of a written agreement.

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