Restoration of appeal and central excise valuation: prior final decision on identical freight and insurance charges issue governed the dispute.

An appeal dismissed for non-prosecution was restored where the appellant had asked for disposal on merits. On valuation, excess freight and insurance charges recovered over actual expenditure were treated as not includible in assessable value under section 4 of the Central Excise Act, because the same issue between the same parties had already been decided in the appellant's favour and that prior final decision governed the dispute. The impugned order was set aside and the Commissioner's order was quashed.

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Issues: (i) Whether the appeal dismissed for non-prosecution should be restored where disposal on merits had been sought; (ii) Whether excess freight and insurance charges recovered over actual expenditure were includible in the assessable value under section 4 of the Central Excise Act.

Issue (i): Whether the appeal dismissed for non-prosecution should be restored where disposal on merits had been sought.

Analysis: The appellant had requested that the matter be decided on merits, and the earlier dismissal for non-prosecution was therefore not justified.

Conclusion: The appeal was restored.

Issue (ii): Whether excess freight and insurance charges recovered over actual expenditure were includible in the assessable value under section 4 of the Central Excise Act.

Analysis: The same issue between the same parties had already been decided in the appellant's favour in an earlier appeal, and that decision was treated as governing the present dispute.

Conclusion: The excess freight and insurance charges were not held includible in the assessable value, and the impugned order was set aside.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded and the Commissioner's order was quashed.

Ratio Decidendi: An earlier final decision on an identical issue between the same parties governs a subsequent appeal on the same question, and the impugned assessment cannot stand when it is inconsistent with that decision.

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