https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=329248 Statements recorded during excise investigation cannot be treated as substantive evidence unless Section 9D of the Central Excise Act is first complied with. The adjudicating authority must examine the maker of the statement as a witness and record a reasoned view on admissibility where clause (a) does not apply; only then can the statement be relied on, with cross-examination available where lawfully admitted. Reliance on such statements without following this procedure amounts to use of irrelevant material and breaches natural justice. The order-in-original was set aside and the matter remanded for de novo adjudication after compliance with Section 9D. en-us Wed, 22 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0530 Thu, 03 Nov 2016 11:25:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=329248 Statements recorded during excise investigation cannot be treated as substantive evidence unless Section 9D of the Central Excise Act is first complied with. The adjudicating authority must examine the maker of the statement as a witness and record a reasoned view on admissibility where clause (a) does not apply; only then can the statement be relied on, with cross-examination available where lawfully admitted. Reliance on such statements without following this procedure amounts to use of irrelevant material and breaches natural justice. The order-in-original was set aside and the matter remanded for de novo adjudication after compliance with Section 9D. Case-Laws Central Excise Wed, 22 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=329248