Finality of remand order sustained refund of unutilised Cenvat credit after document verification, with no fresh merits challenge allowed.

Refund of accumulated and unutilised Cenvat credit under Rule 5 could not be rejected again on merits where the earlier appellate order had already decided the claim on merits and the remand was confined only to verification of documents. After examining the records, the appellate authority found the documents proper, and the Revenue produced no material to dislodge those findings. As the earlier appellate order had attained finality, there was no basis to disturb the order granting refund. The Revenue's appeals therefore failed and the refund relief was sustained.

---

---

Issues: Whether the Revenue could succeed in challenging the refund of accumulated and unutilized Cenvat credit under Rule 5 of the Cenvat Credit Rules when the earlier appellate order had already decided the claim on merits and the remand was confined only to verification of documents.

Analysis: The refund claim had earlier been accepted in favour of the assessee on merits by the appellate authority, and the matter was sent back only for verification of documents. The original adjudicating authority was therefore not entitled to reject the claim again on merits. The appellate authority, after examining the documents, recorded that they were proper and that the Revenue had produced no material to rebut those findings. The earlier appellate order had also attained finality, as the Revenue's challenge was dismissed, leaving no basis to disturb the subsequent order granting relief.

Conclusion: The Revenue's appeals failed and the order allowing the refund claim was sustained.

---