CENVAT credit cannot be denied for technical lapses when duty-paid goods are received and used in manufacture.

CENVAT credit cannot be denied merely because the claimant was unregistered at the relevant time or did not produce original invoices or bills of entry, where the duty-paid character of the goods and their receipt and use in manufacture are otherwise established. The Tribunal treated these defects as technical lapses and relied on prior decisions holding that credit remains admissible when substantive eligibility is not in dispute. The order disallowing credit was set aside, and the credit claim was restored.

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Issues: Whether CENVAT credit could be denied merely because the appellant was not registered at the relevant time and because original documents were not produced, when the duty-paid character of the goods and their receipt and use in manufacture were not in dispute.

Analysis: The dispute concerned disallowance of credit on inputs and goods used in manufacture on the grounds of non-registration and absence of original invoices or bills of entry. The Tribunal noted that the appellant relied on prior decisions holding that credit cannot be rejected on technical defects alone where the credit is otherwise admissible and the receipt and utilisation of the goods are established. The record showed no dispute regarding the use of the goods for manufacture, and the cited precedents supported allowance of credit despite the stated procedural objections.

Conclusion: CENVAT credit could not be disallowed on the stated grounds, and the issue was decided in favour of the appellant.

Final Conclusion: The impugned order was set aside and the appeal was allowed with the credit claim restored.

Ratio Decidendi: CENVAT credit cannot be denied on mere procedural lapses such as non-registration or absence of original documents where the admissibility of credit, receipt of goods, and their use in manufacture are otherwise established.

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