1989 (10) TMI 162

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....lyanam, Member (J) Oral]. - The abovementioned Stay Petitions arise out of two common orders dated 2-11-1988 and 3-11-1988 passed by the Additional Collector of Central Excise, Madras and another dated 13-2-1989 passed by the Collector of Central Excise, Madras and the connected appeals have a common issue for determination. Since we propose to dispose of the appeals themselves today on a short question of law, we grant waiver of pre-deposit of the duty and penalty levied, pending disposal of the appeals to-day. 2. Proceedings were instituted against the appellants herein on a charge that the appellants manufactured and cleared Bolt and Nuts without payment of excise duty and excisable goods were also cleared without raising invoices ....

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....ons four supported the appellants in cross-examination and the one gave evidence against the appellants and during the course of cross-examination of the said persons the appellants repeatedly insisted on their being summoned with their account books for cross-examination and this plea of the appellants for summoning the said witnesses with their account books was negatived by the learned adjudicating authority on the ground that the Department did not place reliance on the account books of those persons summoned. In this context reference was made before us to the letter of the appellant dated 30-4-1988 requesting the Department to make the witnesses available for cross-examination with the following documents for the relevant period : ....

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....eferred to in para 41-42 of the impugned order of the Collector of Central Excise, Madras dated 13-2-1989. It was therefore, submitted that the impugned order is violative of the principles of natural justice. 3. Shri K.K. Bhatia, the learned S.D.R. submitted that if the opinion of the Tribunal is that reliance is placed on the statements recorded from third parties and that they should be allowed to be cross-examined with reference to their account books in conformity with the principles of natural justice, the matter may be remitted for reconsideration, particularly in the light of the observations of the High Court in the Writ proceedings. 4. We have carefully considered the submissions made before us. It is an axiomatic propositio....