TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2015 (12) TMI 931
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....e Department of Customs & Central Excise had issued a show cause notice against the petitioner which resulted into the order-in-original being passed by the Commissioner of Central Excise dated 31.3.2014. Under such order, the adjudicating authority directed recovery of customs duty as well as central excise duty from the petitioner. He also imposed penalties under the Central Excise Act as well as Customs Act. This order-in-original was challenged by the petitioner before the Tribunal by filing an appeal dated 15.07.2014. In such appeal, he challenged the entire order without any distinction regarding directions for payment of duties and penalties under the Central Excise Act or the Customs Act. Upon perusal of appeal memo, it clearly emer....
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....osit with the proper officer the duty and interest demanded or the penalty levied: Provided that where in any particular case, the Commissioner (Appeals) or the Appellate Tribunal is of opinion that the deposit of duty and interest demanded or penalty levied would cause undue hardship to such person, the Commissioner (Appeals) or, as the case may be, the Appellate Tribunal may dispense with such deposit subject to such conditions as he or it may deem fit to impose so as to safeguard the interests of revenue : Provided further that where an application is filed before the Commissioner (Appeals) for dispensing with the deposit of duty and interest demanded or penalty levied under the first proviso, the Commissioner (Appeals)....
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....ction shall not apply to the stay applications and appeals pending before any appellate authority prior to the commence of the Finance Act (No.2 of 2014)." 6. From section 129-E of the Customs |Act, before and after the amendment, it can be seen that, prior to 06.08.2014 it was open for an assessee to seek waiver of pre-deposit before the appellate authority or the Tribunal in its entirety. After the amendment on 06.08.2014, the statutory provision requires mandatory pre-deposit of 7.5% of the value of the duty, with or without penalty, as the case may be, leaving no discretion to the appellate authority to waive such requirement in order to entertain an appeal. 7. The view of the Tribunal is that, since the appeal filed by the petiti....
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.... the petitioner files a separate appeal under the Customs Act. The petitioner thereupon presented a fresh appeal on 11.08.2014 along with stay petition. 11. In our opinion, this presentation of fresh appeal by the petitioner before the Tribunal on 11.8.2014 must be viewed in the backgrounds of the facts of the case and must be treated as continuation of the original proceedings filed before the Tribunal instituted by the petitioner by presenting its original appeal on 21.7.2014. Since there was only one show cause notice which resulted into one order of adjudication passed by the Commissioner, we wonder whether the petitioner was even obliged to file a separate appeal. Insofar as the petitioner is concerned, it received one show cause no....