Refund of excise duty paid under protest attracts Section 11B, with interest payable only after three months under Section 11BB.

Duty amounts paid under protest retained the character of central excise duty, so the refund claim remained governed by Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944. The Tribunal held that Section 72 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 could not be used to bypass the statutory refund mechanism. Interest on delayed refund was held payable only under Section 11BB, and only after expiry of three months from receipt of the refund application, not from the original date of deposit. The wider claim for interest from the date of deposit was rejected, but statutory interest at 6% per annum from the post-three-month period was allowed.

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Issues: Whether duty amounts deposited under protest were to be treated as duty deposits governed by Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944, and whether interest on refund was payable from the date of deposit or only after expiry of three months from the refund application under Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, 1944.

Analysis: The Tribunal held that the amounts paid by the appellant, though under protest, retained the character of central excise duty and therefore the refund claim was governed by Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944. Relying on the settled principle that the statute is a self-contained code for refund and that Section 72 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 cannot be used to bypass the statutory refund mechanism, the Tribunal rejected the claim for interest from the date of deposit. The Tribunal further held that interest on delayed refund is regulated exclusively by Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, 1944, which becomes applicable only when refund is not made within three months from the date of receipt of the refund application.

Conclusion: The claim for interest from the date of deposit was rejected, but the appellant was held entitled to interest at 6% per annum under Section 11BB of the Central Excise Act, 1944 from the date after expiry of three months from the refund application.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded only to the limited extent of securing statutory interest for delayed refund under Section 11BB, while the wider claim for interest from the original date of deposit was denied.

Ratio Decidendi: In refund matters under the Central Excise Act, 1944, duty paid under protest remains governed by Section 11B, and interest for delayed refund is payable only under Section 11BB from the expiry of three months after receipt of the refund application, not from the date of deposit.

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