Exemption for research equipment cannot be denied for certificate format defects when actual use by the institute is shown.

Transformers supplied to an accredited atomic energy research institute were held to qualify for exemption under Notification No. 10/97-C.E. because the goods were covered as scientific and technical equipment and were intended for, and actually used in, research. The exemption could not be denied merely because the certificate was not issued in the manufacturer's name or did not identify the goods in the exact format preferred by the revenue, as the notification did not impose that restrictive condition. The denial of benefit was therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether transformers supplied to an accredited atomic energy research institute were eligible for exemption under Notification No. 10/97-C.E. dated 01.03.1997, and whether the benefit could be denied on the ground that the certificate was not issued in the manufacturer's name or did not specify the goods in the manner insisted upon by the revenue.

Analysis: The goods were supplied to a recognised research institute for research purposes under certificates issued by the Department of Atomic Energy, and the institute produced material showing actual receipt and use of the transformers. The notification covered scientific and technical instruments, apparatus and equipment, and did not impose a restriction limiting such goods to a particular user description in the certificate. The determining consideration was the intended and actual use of the goods by the accredited research institute, and on that basis the exemption could not be denied merely because the certificate did not conform to the narrower format insisted upon by the lower authorities.

Conclusion: The transformers qualified for the exemption, and the denial of benefit was unsustainable.

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