Assessable value excludes dealer-paid free after-sale service costs for manufactured vehicles under central excise valuation principles.

Dealer-incurred expenses for providing free after-sale services to manufactured vehicles are not includible in the assessable value for central excise valuation. The settled Supreme Court principle was applied to treat such post-sale service expenditure as outside the value of the goods cleared from manufacture. On that basis, the article states that the impugned orders were liable to be set aside.

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Issues: Whether expenses incurred by dealers for providing free after-sale services to manufactured vehicles are includible in the assessable value for central excise purposes.

Analysis: The issue was treated as settled by binding Supreme Court precedent, which had reiterated the governing principles on excisable valuation. Applying that settled position, expenditure incurred by dealers towards after-sale services was not part of the value of the manufactured vehicles for assessment.

Conclusion: Such dealer-incurred after-sale service expenses are not includible in the assessable value and the impugned orders were liable to be set aside.

Ratio Decidendi: Dealer-incurred expenditure on free after-sale services rendered to customers is not part of the assessable value of the manufactured goods for central excise valuation.

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