Repeal without saving clause lapses pending excise proceedings and invalidates notice issued under the old rule.

A show cause notice issued under Rule 10 read with Rule 10A of the Central Excise Rules could not survive after Section 11A was inserted and Rule 10 was abrogated without any saving clause. Proceedings initiated under the repealed rule lapse unless expressly preserved, and Section 6 of the General Clauses Act does not save them where the later enactment repeals the rule without such protection. The notice was therefore invalid and the order founded on it could not stand, resulting in relief for the assessee.

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Issues: Whether a show cause notice issued under Rule 10 read with Rule 10(A) of the Central Excise Rules survived after the insertion of Section 11A and the abrogation of Rule 10, in the absence of any saving clause.

Analysis: The notice was issued before the statutory amendment, but the amendment brought in Section 11A and simultaneously abrogated Rule 10 without any express saving provision. In such a situation, proceedings initiated under the repealed rule cannot continue unless they are preserved by a specific saving clause. Section 6 of the General Clauses Act does not assist where the later enactment has the effect of repealing the rule and no saving clause is provided. The show cause notice therefore ceased to be valid and operative, and any order founded on it could not stand.

Conclusion: The show cause notice was invalid and the impugned order was liable to be quashed, in favour of the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: When a statutory rule is abrogated by a later enactment without a saving clause, pending action taken under the repealed rule lapses and is not protected by Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897.

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