https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790002 Penalties under Rule 25 and Rule 27 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 were unsustainable where the duty short-payment arose from a classification dispute and a bona fide misunderstanding of the legal position. The Tribunal applied the principle that penalty is not automatic and requires contumacious, dishonest, or consciously non-compliant conduct; a mere technical or venial breach is insufficient. Treating the appellant as a Government of India factory/public sector undertaking and noting the interpretational nature of the dispute, the Tribunal set aside the penalties. The duty and interest liability, however, remained undisturbed. en-us Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 Sat, 18 Apr 2026 08:21:57 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790002 Penalties under Rule 25 and Rule 27 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 were unsustainable where the duty short-payment arose from a classification dispute and a bona fide misunderstanding of the legal position. The Tribunal applied the principle that penalty is not automatic and requires contumacious, dishonest, or consciously non-compliant conduct; a mere technical or venial breach is insufficient. Treating the appellant as a Government of India factory/public sector undertaking and noting the interpretational nature of the dispute, the Tribunal set aside the penalties. The duty and interest liability, however, remained undisturbed. Case-Laws Central Excise Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790002