Departmental trade notice on exemption for cast iron sleeper plates held binding, making the denial of benefit unsustainable.

A departmental trade notice treating cast iron sleeper plates as eligible for exemption under the relevant notification was held binding on the Department. The Tribunal found that the jurisdictional Commissioner could not disregard that trade notice while denying the exemption benefit to the assessee. On that basis, the impugned denial of exemption was unsustainable and was set aside.

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Issues: Whether the departmental trade notice regarding classification of cast iron sleeper plates and extension of exemption under the relevant exemption notification was binding on the Department, and whether the assessee was entitled to the exemption benefit.

Analysis: The trade notice issued by the Calcutta Commissionerate treated cast iron sleeper plates as eligible for exemption and stated that the benefit of the exemption notification could be extended to such goods. The Tribunal held that such a trade notice is binding on the Department and that the jurisdictional Commissioner could not disregard it while denying the exemption. The impugned order was therefore unsustainable.

Conclusion: The issue was decided in favour of the assessee, and the denial of exemption was set aside.

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