TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2013 (11) TMI 999
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....nterest. The appellant paid the duty upon finalization of the Bills of Entry. They filed an appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) against the levy of interest which was rejected. The demand of interest was quantified under Section 18(3) of the Customs Act, 1962. 2. The learned counsel on behalf of the applicant submits that sub-section (3) of Section 18 of the Customs Act was inserted with effect from 13.7.2006 by Section 21 of the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 2006 which will be applicable prospectively. He also submits that the Tribunal in the appellants own case as reported in 2008 (223) ELT 633 held that demand of interest cannot be levied under Section 18(3) prior to 13.7.2006. He relied upon the following decisions of the Tribun....
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....e to pay interest, on any amount payable to the Central Government, consequent to the final assessment order under sub-section 92), at the rate fixed by the Central Government under section 28AB from the first day of the month in which the duty is provisionally assessed till the date of payment thereof. 5. On a plain reading of Section 18(3), it is clear that interest is payable on the provisional assessment of duty 'from the first day of the month in which duty is provisionally assessed till the date of payment'. In the present case, duty was provisionally assessed during the period from April 2005 to February 2006 when there was no provision for payment of interest under Section 18 of the Customs Act. We find that the Tribunal in the app....
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....tc. are involved in this case. Therefore, while confirming the differential duty demand which has been made on the basis of comparable prices, we waive confiscation of the imported goods, imposition of redemption fine and penalty in this case. As regards the order of the Adjudicating Commissioner, in page 14 that differential duty along with interest should be adjusted from the bank guarantee, we find that the goods were initially assessed provisionally at the declared valuation on execution of bond and bank guarantee and since as pointed out by Shri Mehta there was no provision under Section 18 of the Customs Act, 1962 at the material time for demand of interest in respect of provisional assessment cases, we hold that the Adjudicating Comm....