2010 (5) TMI 165

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....assed by the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Tribunal (New Delhi) (for short 'the Tribunal'), vide which a penalty of Rs.50,000/- imposed upon each of the respondent was ordered to be set aside. Briefly, the facts of the case are that the premises of M/s Shobit Impex situated at Abohar as well as their godown and factory premises of M/s Gandhi Chem-Fert Industries, Abohar were checked on 22.7.1998. During the search, the factory premises of Gandhi Chem-Fert Industries at Abohar, sale invoices, copies of bills of entry and copies of Good Receipts (for short 'G.R.s') and other miscellaneous correspondence files pertaining to M/s Shobit Impex were recovered and resumed under proper Panchnama dated 23.7.1998. During further search, it was foun....

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....f the ingredients mentioned in Rule 209-A are applicable. It was held that the transporters had actually not transported the goods. It was further held that the transporters had neither acquired possession of the excisable goods nor dealt with the excisable goods in any manner with the knowledge that the goods are liable for confiscation under the Central Excise Act. Mr. Gurpreet Singh, counsel for the Revenue as drawn our attention to Rule 209-A which is reproduced as under:- "Rule 209A. Penalty for certain offences.- Any person, who acquires possession of, or is any way concerned in transporting, removing, depositing, keeping, concealing, selling, or purchasing, or in any other manner deals with, any excisable goods which he knows o....

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....therefore, they had facilitated the fraud being committed by M/s Shobhit Impex and various other buyers. No one has put in appearance on behalf of the respondent. On the basis of the aforementioned facts, the following law point arises for consideration in this appeal:- "Whether the Hon'ble Tribunal is correct in holding that no contravention of the provisions of Rule 209A of the erstwhile Central Excise Rules, 1944 has been made by a Transporter Company by way of supplying the Blank G.R.'s to a Dealer, which has facilitated the said dealer to issue fake/bogus Modvatable Documents in contravention of Rule 57G ad 57GG of the said rules." A perusal of the aforementioned facts clearly shows that M/s Milap Transport Carriers and M/s....