Specific tariff entry prevails for liquid paraffin, while pharmacopeal-grade material may qualify as a medicament.

Liquid paraffin imported as such was held to fall under the specific entry for liquid paraffin in Notification No. 115/86-Cus., not the broader lubricating oil entry, because a specific tariff description prevails and end use was not required where the product was expressly named. For the alternative excise issue, purified pharmacopeal-grade liquid paraffin IP/BP/USP was treated as classifiable as a medicament under Heading 3003.20, since it was suitable for medicinal use and no material showed it to be a mixed product or patent or proprietary medicine. The result was that the customs classification was sustained while the medicinal classification claim succeeded.

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Issues: (i) Whether liquid paraffin imported as such fell under Item 27.10(X) of Notification No. 115/86-Cus. or under Item 27.10(VII) as lubricating oil; (ii) Whether liquid paraffin IP/BP/USP grade was classifiable under Heading 3003.20 of the Central Excise Tariff as medicament.

Issue (i): Whether liquid paraffin imported as such fell under Item 27.10(X) of Notification No. 115/86-Cus. or under Item 27.10(VII) as lubricating oil.

Analysis: The notification itself drew a clear distinction between "liquid paraffin" and "lubricating oil". The product was admittedly imported and described as liquid paraffin, and the evidence relied on by the assessee did not establish that the goods themselves answered the specification of lubricating oil. The Court also held that where the notification specifically names liquid paraffin, the department need not go into end use, and the classification cannot be strained so as to make the specific entry redundant.

Conclusion: The goods were correctly classifiable under Item 27.10(X) of Notification No. 115/86-Cus., and the claim under Item 27.10(VII) failed.

Issue (ii): Whether liquid paraffin IP/BP/USP grade was classifiable under Heading 3003.20 of the Central Excise Tariff as medicament.

Analysis: The goods were found to be purified, pharmacopeal grade liquid paraffin, and the appellate authority had not dealt with the alternative claim. A trade notice of the Central Excise Collectorate indicated that liquid paraffin IP, when unmixed and suitable for medicinal use, would be classifiable as a medicament under Heading 3003.20. No material was shown to establish that the goods were mixed products or patent or proprietary medicines.

Conclusion: The goods were classifiable under Heading 3003.20 of the Central Excise Tariff as medicament.

Final Conclusion: The classification was sustained on the customs notification issue, but the alternative central excise classification claim succeeded, resulting in a partial allowance of the appeals.

Ratio Decidendi: When a tariff notification specifically names a product, that specific entry governs over a broader description, and an alternative medicinal classification may be accepted where the goods are shown to be pharmacopeal grade liquid paraffin suitable for such use.

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