Whether 'fly ash' is excisable and whether duty paid under...

Whether 'fly ash' is excisable and whether duty paid under protest was refundable: Tribunal held classification disputes decided by other litigants do not dispose of an individual taxpayer's protest; relying on the principle in Mafatlal that payment under court order constitutes payment under protest, the appellant's unresolved protest precluded time-bar under Section 11B and entitlement to refund. The revenue's inaction on the appellant's protest and subsequent favorable decisions for similar units supported allowing the refund; the impugned order was set aside and the appeal allowed. - CESTAT