Central excise levy on Glass Wool upheld; no confiscatory effect or Article 14 discrimination was shown.

The levy of central excise duty on Glass Wool at Rs. 1.50 per kg for the intervening period was not shown to be confiscatory, and the record did not support a finding that the temporary absence of a later process-based classification violated Article 14. The court found no material to treat the duty as confiscatory merely because it was high, and no basis to hold that the difference between Glass Wool manufactured by Hager's process and other processes made the levy discriminatory. The constitutional challenge therefore failed.

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Issues: Whether the levy of central excise duty on Glass Wool at Rs. 1.50 per kg for the period 1 March 1973 to 30 April 1973 was confiscatory or discriminatory, and whether the absence of an earlier classification between Glass Wool manufactured by Hager's process and Glass Wool manufactured by other processes violated Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

Analysis: The petition challenged the levy imposed by notification during the intervening period before the later notification reduced the duty for Glass Wool manufactured by Hager's process. The Court found no material to hold that the levy, even if high, was confiscatory. It also found no basis on the record to hold that the temporary absence of the later classification rendered the levy discriminatory. The challenge under Article 14 therefore failed.

Conclusion: The levy was neither confiscatory nor discriminatory, and the challenge to its validity was rejected.

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