Court sets aside Orders-in-Original, emphasizes procedural requirements for fair adjudication.

The court set aside the Orders-in-Original and directed the Authority to issue a show cause notice, conduct a hearing, and pass an order of adjudication within specified timelines. The judgment emphasized the necessity of following procedural requirements, particularly providing an opportunity for the petitioner to be heard before adjudication, as mandated by Section 33A of the Central Excise Act, 1944.

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Issues:
Challenge to two Orders-in-Original under Central Excise Act, 1944 for refund of unutilized input service tax credit; Non-enclosure of Foreign Inward Remittance Certificates (FIRCs) due to RBI notification; Waiver of personal hearing prior to adjudication; Methodology of quantification of refund; Authority's failure to issue show cause notice; Compliance with Section 33A of the Act.

Analysis:
The petitioner contested two Orders-in-Original seeking refund of unutilized input service tax credit under the Central Excise Act, 1944. The claims required various documents, including FIRCs to evidence bank realization for services exported. However, the petitioner did not enclose FIRCs citing an RBI notification mandating electronic FIRCs or Inward Remittance Unique Number (IRM Unique number) for export remittances. The sufficiency of evidence for remittances was not considered by the Assessing Officer due to the petitioner waiving a personal hearing.

The petitioner submitted quantification methodology for refund, supported by decisions of the Appellate Authority. Despite raising concerns about FIRCs, the petitioner waived a show cause notice but requested a personal hearing if the Authority disagreed with the relied-upon decisions. The Authority's order discussed quantification methodology but overlooked the FIRCs issue due to the absence of a show cause notice.

The judgment focused on whether the petitioner should have been heard given the conditional waiver. Section 33A of the Act mandates the Adjudicating Authority to provide an opportunity for a party to be heard if desired. As the petitioner expressed a desire for a hearing based on the Authority's assessment of submissions and appellate decisions, the Authority should have issued a show cause notice, framed issues, and conducted a personal hearing before passing an Order-in-Original. Consequently, the impugned order was set aside, and the Authority was directed to issue a show cause notice within four weeks, conduct a hearing, and pass an order of adjudication within another four weeks.

In conclusion, the Writ Petitions were allowed, emphasizing the importance of complying with procedural requirements, including providing an opportunity for a party to be heard before adjudication.

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