Conditional waiver of pre-deposit granted with partial deposit required and recovery stayed pending appeal.

Strong prima facie case for waiver of pre-deposit and stay of recovery was not accepted in full; the appellant was required to deposit part of the duty and penalty within 12 weeks. On such deposit, the pre-deposit obligation would stand dispensed with and recovery would remain stayed pending the appeal. The operative effect was a conditional waiver, preserving the appellant's appeal rights while securing partial payment as a safeguard.

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Issues: Whether the appellant had made out a strong prima facie case for waiver of pre-deposit of duty and penalty, and whether recovery should be stayed pending appeal.

Outcome: The appellant was directed to deposit Rs. 10 lakhs towards duty and Rs. 1 lakh towards penalty within 12 weeks, and on such deposit the requirement of pre-deposit stood dispensed with and recovery remained stayed pending the appeal.

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