Prospective duty demand on revised classification cannot cover the period before the show cause notice.

Where the Department revises an approved classification, the resulting duty demand is prospective and cannot be imposed for the period before the show cause notice. The Tribunal applied this principle to hold that the earlier confirmation of demand for the six months preceding the notice was inconsistent with the governing rule, and the demand for that prior period was set aside in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether duty demand arising from revision of an approved classification could be confirmed for the six months period preceding the show cause notice, or whether such demand was only prospective from the date of the notice.

Analysis: The appeal did not dispute the revised classification, but confined the challenge to the temporal reach of the demand. The Tribunal applied the ratio that when the Department changes an approved classification, the consequential duty demand cannot operate retrospectively for the period prior to the show cause notice. The earlier confirmation of six months' demand was therefore inconsistent with the governing principle.

Conclusion: The demand for the six months period prior to the show cause notice was set aside and the appeal was allowed in favour of the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: Where an approved classification is revised by the Department, the resulting duty demand is prospective and cannot be imposed for the period prior to the show cause notice.

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