Conversion of DEEC shipping bills to drawback claims upheld, with drawback to be classified and quantified under the correct rate schedule.

Shipping bills filed under the DEEC scheme may be converted into drawback shipping bills where the export claim is otherwise maintainable and the objections to conversion are merely technical. The proper officer must examine the goods, identify the correct chapter heading and rate schedule, and then determine the admissible drawback before sanctioning the claim. In the stated matter, the conversion was accepted and the case was remitted for quantification and sanction of drawback in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether shipping bills filed under the DEEC scheme were liable to be converted into drawback shipping bills and the drawback claim thereafter determined and sanctioned.

Analysis: The dispute had already been decided in the assessee's own case, where conversion of shipping bills from the export incentive scheme to the drawback scheme had been allowed. The Tribunal reiterated that the reasons for denying conversion were not sustainable and that the proper course was to examine the goods and determine the drawback under the appropriate rate schedule. It also held that the adjudicating authority must identify the correct chapter heading for the assessee's claim and finalise the drawback accordingly.

Conclusion: The shipping bills were held to be convertible from the DEEC scheme to the drawback scheme, and the matter was remitted to the adjudicating authority to quantify and sanction the drawback claim in accordance with law.

Ratio Decidendi: When the export claim is otherwise maintainable, conversion of shipping bills from one export scheme to the drawback scheme cannot be denied on untenable technical grounds, and the proper officer must determine the admissible drawback on the correct classification.

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