Brand name exemption remains available when a foreign company's name on labels does not create trade association

Entitlement to the small-scale exemption under Notification No. 175/86-C.E. was preserved where the trade names on the goods belonged to the assessees and that finding was unrebutted. Mere appearance of a foreign company's name on the label did not, by itself, establish that another person's brand name or trade name had been affixed, nor did it create an association in the course of trade sufficient to deny the exemption. On that basis, the Revenue's objection failed and the assessees remained eligible for the notification benefit.

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Issues: Whether the assessees were disentitled to the benefit of Notification No. 175/86-C.E. on the ground that the labels used on the goods also bore the name of a foreign company, thereby creating an association in the course of trade between the goods and that company.

Analysis: The trade names used on the goods were owned by the assessees, and that finding was not rebutted. Mere mention of the foreign company's name on the label did not, by itself, establish that another person's brand name or trade name had been affixed, nor did it create the required association in the course of trade.

Conclusion: The assessees remained entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 175/86-C.E.; the Revenue's challenge failed.

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