Alternative exemption claims under the same notification must be considered on their own merits, despite an earlier claim under another category.

An assessee who had obtained exemption under one category of a notification is not precluded from later claiming a more beneficial exemption under another category of the same notification, if otherwise eligible in law. Rejection of the later claim merely because an earlier application was made under a different head is not legally sustainable. The authorities must examine the subsequent exemption claim independently on its own merits and cannot treat the earlier claim as extinguishing the right to seek alternative relief. The impugned orders were set aside and the matter remitted for fresh consideration of the exemption claim in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether an assessee who had earlier sought and obtained exemption under one category of an exemption notification was precluded from later claiming a more beneficial exemption under another category of the same notification, and whether the authorities were bound to consider such claim on merits.

Analysis: The entitlement to exemption under one head does not bar consideration of a claim under another head or category where the applicant is otherwise eligible. The rejection of the claim solely because the assessee had earlier applied under a different category was not legally sustainable. The withdrawal or non-availability of exemption under the earlier category did not extinguish the right to seek a different and more beneficial exemption, and the authorities were required to examine the later claim independently on its own merits.

Conclusion: The claim for exemption under the alternative category could not be rejected on the ground of the earlier application under another category, and the authorities were bound to reconsider the matter on merits.

Final Conclusion: The impugned orders were set aside, and the matter was remitted for fresh consideration of the exemption claim under the relevant category in accordance with law.

Ratio Decidendi: An assessee is not estopped from claiming a more beneficial exemption under a different category of the same notification, and such claim must be decided independently on its own merits if otherwise permissible in law.

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