Criminal prosecution for false excise information can proceed despite a pending duty appeal and stay of recovery.

Criminal prosecution for alleged false information and related offences under the Central Excise law was maintainable despite a pending CEGAT appeal and a stay on duty recovery. The court distinguished the duty dispute from the criminal allegations, noting that the complaint also alleged fictitious documents, false claims of fly ash consumption, and misdeclaration of materials to evade duty. Because the prosecution was founded on alleged fabrication and misstatement of facts, not merely on non-payment of disputed duty, the stay of recovery did not bar cognizance. The petition to quash or stay the proceedings was rejected, and any objection to the IPC charge could be raised before the trial court.

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Issues: Whether criminal proceedings for alleged supply of false information and related offences under the Central Excise law could be quashed or stayed merely because the assessee's appeal against the duty demand was pending before CEGAT and recovery of duty had been stayed.

Analysis: The complaint alleged not merely non-payment of duty, but creation of fictitious documents, false claims of fly ash consumption, and misdeclaration of materials to evade duty. Those allegations constituted an independent accusation of supplying false information under the Central Excise Act. The issue before CEGAT was the correctness of the duty demand, whereas the criminal case concerned the alleged fabrication and misstatement of facts. A stay of collection of duty did not operate as a bar to cognizance of the criminal offence, because the two proceedings were not identical and the prosecution was not founded only on non-payment of the disputed duty. Any objection regarding cognizability of the IPC charge could also be raised before the trial court.

Conclusion: The petition for quashing or stay of the criminal proceedings was rejected; the prosecution was held maintainable despite the pending appeal before CEGAT.

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