Interpretation of scope of exempted description 'apparatus for...

Interpretation of scope of exempted description 'apparatus for artificial respiration or other therapeutic respiration' considered by CESTAT; tribunal concluded that 'oxygen concentrator' falls within the exemption because the source of oxygen does not alter physiological function or the tariff description, and restrictive focus on 'ventilator' was erroneous. Appellate obligations to furnish or supplement a speaking order and to ensure compliance with assessing officer's duties were emphasised, with the doctrine of merger applying to integrate appellate reasoning into the record. Cross-column and holistic reading of the notification supported a technology-neutral construction, and the impugned denial of exemption was set aside.

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