Endorsed bill of entry as duty paying document for Modvat credit; no referable question of law arose from the Tribunal's interpretation.

An endorsed bill of entry was treated as a duty paying document for Modvat credit because endorsement did not make it cease to be a bill of entry. The Tribunal's view was confined to interpreting the expression "bill of entry" in Rule 57G(2) of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, and was not an expansion beyond the rule's terms. On that basis, the proposed question of law was found to rest on an incorrect assumption that the Tribunal had gone outside the rule, so no referable question of law arose and the reference application was dismissed as not maintainable.

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Issues: Whether the Tribunal had gone beyond Rule 57G(2) of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 by treating an endorsed bill of entry as a duty paying document for Modvat credit and whether the proposed question of law arose from the Tribunal's order.

Analysis: The order held that a bill of entry does not cease to be a duty paying document merely because it is endorsed. The Tribunal had interpreted the expression "bill of entry" in Rule 57G(2) and had not extended the rule beyond its terms. Since the question framed proceeded on an assumption that the Tribunal had travelled outside the rule, it was held that no referable question of law arose from the order.

Conclusion: The reference application was not maintainable and was dismissed.

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