2002 (8) TMI 669

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....ods cleared without payment of duty by M/s. IPI Steel Ltd., imposed penalty of equivalent amount on them under Section 11AC of the Central Excise Act and demanded interest under Section 11AB of the Act besides confiscating M.S. Ingots weighing 325.069 M.T. valued at Rs. 29,33,800/- with an option to redeem the same on payment of fine of Rs. 5 lakhs. The Commissioner has also imposed a penalty of Rs. 50,000/- on Shri H.S. Gilra, Managing Director. 2. Shri P.R. Biswas, ld. Consultant, submitted that the appellants manufacture M.S. Ingots and re-rolled products of non-alloy steel and alloy steel; that M.S. Ingots utilised captively in Mill No. III are exempted from payment of duty under Notification No. 67/95-C.E. as the final products....

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....payable that the penalty imposed is on higher side which may be reduced considering the fact that part duty amount was deposited by them even before the issue of show cause notice; that in any case as per the proviso to Section 11AC of the Act, the maximum penalty would be only 25% of the duty not paid. 3. Finally, the ld. Consultant submitted that no penalty is imposable on Shri Gilra, Managing Director; that whatever irregularities occured in the factory was due to his illness; that there is also no previous history of any wrong doing by the company. 4.  Countering the arguments, Shri T.K. Kar, ld. S.D.R., submitted that the appellants are not contesting their liability to pay duty on the quantity of M.S. Ingots used capti....

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....tended that a quantity of 325.069 M.T. ingots found in excess is included in the Quantity of M.S. ingots found short. A perusal of the impugned orders reveal that the Commissioner has considered the said aspect and has given his specific finding as under :- " ........ the excess quantity of 325.069 M.T. of M.S. ingots detected in Unit No. II could be the unutilized quantity of M.S. ingots removed clandestinely without payment of duty from the SMS Unit or the Re-Rolling Mill No. III. Accordingly, the duty element involved on this excess quantity of 325.069 M.T. having been covered under the demand raised in respect of the 1344.675 M.T. of M.S. Ingots found short (in the SMS Unit and the Re-Rolling Unit No. III), no further duty liability ....