Excise duty recovery against legal heirs upheld where short levy arose during the deceased noticee's lifetime.

Proceedings to recover short-levied excise duty under Section 11A may continue against the legal representatives of a deceased noticee where the duty liability had already arisen during the noticee's lifetime. The document states that Section 11A operates against the person chargeable with duty, and that unpaid duty can be enforced against the estate represented by the heirs. It further notes that strict construction of the taxing statute did not bar recovery, because that approach would create an anomalous result by denying recovery of underpaid duty while leaving claims for excess duty intact. The recovery notice against the legal representatives was therefore treated as valid.

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Issues: Whether proceedings for recovery of short-levied excise duty under Section 11A of the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 can be continued against the legal representatives of a deceased person on whom the original show cause notice had been served.

Analysis: The charging provision fixed liability on excisable goods and the rules made the manufacturer or warehouse keeper primarily responsible for payment, but the Court held that Section 11A operates against the person chargeable with duty and is not confined to the original noticee in a narrow sense. Since the short levy had already arisen during the lifetime of the predecessor-in-interest, the demand for the unpaid balance could be enforced against the estate represented by the legal heirs. The Court also rejected the contention that strict construction of a taxing statute required a different result, observing that such a view would produce anomalous consequences by preventing recovery of underpaid duty while preserving claims for excess duty paid.

Conclusion: The proceedings could validly continue against the legal representatives, and the challenge to the subsequent notice failed.

Final Conclusion: The judgment under challenge was set aside and the excise recovery proceedings were directed to proceed against the writ petitioners as legal representatives of the deceased noticee.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a short levy of excise duty is noticed during the lifetime of the person chargeable with duty, proceedings under Section 11A may be continued against the legal representatives after that person's death.

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