Jurisdictional invalidity of show cause notice vitiates adjudication when issued by an incompetent Central Excise officer.

A show cause notice signed by an Assistant Director of Anti Evasion was treated as without jurisdiction because the Directorate of Anti Evasion and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence were regarded as separate entities for appointment and exercise of powers. On that footing, the officer was not a competent Central Excise authority to issue the notice. The invalidity of the notice was fatal to the proceedings, and the adjudication order founded on it could not be sustained.

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Issues: Whether the show cause notice issued by the Assistant Director of Anti Evasion was without jurisdiction and invalid, thereby vitiating the adjudication order passed on its basis.

Analysis: The Tribunal followed its earlier decision on the same jurisdictional question and treated the Directorate of Anti Evasion and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence as separate entities for the purpose of appointment and exercise of powers. On that basis, a notice signed by an officer appointed in the Directorate of Anti Evasion was held not to be a valid notice issued by a competent Central Excise officer. Once the notice was invalid, the proceedings founded on it could not survive.

Conclusion: The show cause notice was without jurisdiction and invalid, and the adjudication order based on it could not be sustained.

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