Bona fide belief and voluntary duty payment justified reduction of penalty for excisable goods cleared without duty.

Penalty for removal of excisable goods without payment of duty was reduced because the duty was voluntarily paid before any show cause notice, and the clearances were made under a bona fide belief that the goods were not excisable. The recorded facts showed that the adjudicating authority itself considered leniency justified in light of the appellant's bona fides. On those circumstances, the higher penalty was not maintained, and it was reduced from Rs. 2,00,000 to Rs. 1,00,000.

---

---

Issues: Whether the penalty imposed for removal of excisable goods without payment of duty warranted reduction in view of voluntary payment made without issuance of a show cause notice and the appellant's bona fides.

Analysis: The duty demand was not in dispute and was voluntarily paid by the appellant even before any show cause notice was issued. The facts recorded showed that the clearances were made under a bona fide impression that the goods were not excisable, and the adjudicating authority had itself noted that this conduct justified taking a lenient view. In these circumstances, the circumstances did not justify maintaining the penalty at the level imposed.

Conclusion: The penalty was reduced from Rs. 2,00,000/- to Rs. 1,00,000/-, and the appeal was otherwise dismissed.

---