Strict exemption conditions and ascertainable duty demands upheld; non-quantified notice and lower-duty kraft paper did not defeat liability.

A show cause notice is not invalid merely because it does not state an exact duty figure, where the applicable rate, period of clearance, and basis of demand are clearly set out and the amount is ascertainable from those directions; computation in implementation of the order is treated as administrative, not a delegation of judicial power. A conditional exemption must be construed strictly, and corrugated boards made from kraft paper did not qualify where the raw material had not actually suffered duty at the prescribed 37.5% ad valorem rate. The duty demand was upheld and the appeal failed.

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Issues: (i) Whether the absence of an expressly quantified duty demand in the show cause notice or orders rendered the demand unenforceable or amounted to an impermissible delegation of judicial function; (ii) Whether corrugated boards made from kraft paper on which duty was paid at less than 37.5% ad valorem were entitled to full exemption under the relevant notification.

Issue (i): Whether the absence of an expressly quantified duty demand in the show cause notice or orders rendered the demand unenforceable or amounted to an impermissible delegation of judicial function.

Analysis: The notice and the orders stated the applicable rate of duty, the period of clearance, and the basis of demand. The duty amount could be worked out from those directions, and the assessee had not sought clarification of the exact figure before replying to the notice. The computation of the amount in such circumstances was treated as an administrative exercise carried out in implementation of the adjudicatory order, not as a transfer of judicial power.

Conclusion: The challenge based on non-mention of the exact duty amount failed and was rejected.

Issue (ii): Whether corrugated boards made from kraft paper on which duty was paid at less than 37.5% ad valorem were entitled to full exemption under the relevant notification.

Analysis: The exemption was conditional upon the raw material having suffered duty at the prescribed rate of 37.5% ad valorem. Payment of a lower net amount because of concessions available to the paper manufacturers did not satisfy that condition. The notification was construed strictly, and the benefit was denied where the specified rate was not actually borne on the kraft paper used in manufacture.

Conclusion: The corrugated boards were not eligible for the full exemption, and the demand was sustainable.

Final Conclusion: The appeal failed in full, and the demand of duty was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: A conditional exemption notification must be satisfied strictly according to its prescribed duty condition, and a notice is not invalid merely because the exact amount is not quantified if the basis of demand and the applicable rate are clearly stated and ascertainable.

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