Contemporaneous laboratory certificate prevails over delayed test report for concessional export duty eligibility

A contemporaneous laboratory certificate issued at the time of export was treated as the better evidence of entitlement to concessional export duty, because it showed the goods met the relevant Fe-content limit. A later departmental chemical examiner's report, obtained about a month after export, was considered unreliable where the nature of the goods could change over time. On that basis, the delayed test result did not displace the export-time certificate, and the differential export duty demand could not be sustained.

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Issues: Whether the assessee was entitled to the concessional export duty on the basis of the laboratory certificate produced at the time of export, and whether the later chemical examiner's report could displace it.

Analysis: The goods were exported on the basis of a certificate issued by a reputed laboratory showing Fe content within the concessional limit. The subsequent departmental test was conducted after about a month, and the Court treated the later result as unreliable in view of the possibility of change in iron ore content over time. In these circumstances, the contemporaneous certificate furnished at export was held to be the better evidence.

Conclusion: The issue was decided in favour of the assessee, and the demand for differential export duty could not be sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a contemporaneous certificate from a reputed laboratory supports eligibility for exemption or concession, a delayed departmental test report may be disregarded if the nature of the goods makes the later result unreliable.

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