Customs duty refund barred by final levy and limitation where the assessment order remained unchallenged.

Customs duty refund could not be ordered because the levy had attained finality and the assessment order had not been set aside; a statutory refund authority cannot disregard an operative levy merely because a later decision took a different view, even where payment was said to have been made under a mistake of law. The refund claims were also filed beyond the prescribed limitation period under the customs refund provision, leaving no power to entertain them. The Court upheld rejection of the refund applications and declined interference with the challenged orders.

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Issues: (i) whether refund of customs duty could be granted when the levy had attained finality and the assessment was not set aside; (ii) whether the refund applications were barred by limitation under the customs refund provision.

Issue (i): Whether refund of customs duty could be granted when the levy had attained finality and the assessment was not set aside.

Analysis: The duty was paid without protest and the levy had already become final at the departmental stage. So long as that order remained in force, refund could not be ordered merely because another case had taken a different view, even if the payment was said to have been made under a mistake of law. A refund authority created by statute cannot ignore the finality of the levy order.

Conclusion: Refund could not be granted on the ground of a different later view while the final levy order continued to stand.

Issue (ii): Whether the refund applications were barred by limitation under the customs refund provision.

Analysis: The applications were made beyond the time prescribed by the refund provision and were therefore beyond the authority's statutory power to entertain. Once the statutory period expired, rejection was mandatory.

Conclusion: The refund claims were time-barred and were rightly rejected.

Final Conclusion: The Court upheld the rejection of the refund applications and found no ground to interfere with the orders under challenge.

Ratio Decidendi: A statutory refund of customs duty cannot be granted unless the levy order has been set aside, and a refund application filed beyond the prescribed limitation must be rejected.

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