Refund of cess collected after repeal remains payable where the levy lacks authority of law and no refund mechanism exists.

R&D Cess collected after repeal of the Research and Development Cess Act, 1986 was held to lack authority of law once the charging provision ceased from 01.04.2017. Such collection could not be retained merely because the repealed statute contained no refund mechanism, as retention of money without legal authority offends Article 265 of the Constitution. A payment made by mistake or inadvertence after repeal remained refundable, and deposit into the Consolidated Fund did not defeat restitution. The refund claim was therefore maintainable, and the cess collected after repeal was required to be returned.

---

---

Issues: Whether R&D Cess paid after repeal of the Research and Development Cess Act, 1986 could be retained by the authorities and whether the refund claim was liable to be rejected.

Analysis: The levy under Section 3 of the Research and Development Cess Act, 1986 ceased upon repeal of that enactment with effect from 01.04.2017. Amounts collected thereafter were not supported by authority of law. Money collected or retained without authority of law offends Article 265 of the Constitution of India and cannot be withheld merely on the plea that the repealed Act contains no refund mechanism. A payment made by mistake or inadvertence after repeal remains refundable, and the source of deposit in the Consolidated Fund of India does not defeat the citizen's entitlement to restitution.

Conclusion: The refund claim was maintainable and the respondents were bound to refund the R&D Cess collected after repeal.

Final Conclusion: The writ petitions were allowed and the petitioners obtained refund of the cess paid after the repeal of the statute.

Ratio Decidendi: Amounts collected without authority of law, including payments made by mistake after repeal of the charging statute, must be refunded and cannot be retained on the ground that the repealed enactment provides no refund procedure.

---