TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2014 (7) TMI 1232
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....spondent herein. 2. The brief facts of the case, leading to the present appeal are stated hereunder :- The Respondent filed the application on 19-3-1998 before the original authority, claiming refund of Central Excise Duty of Rs. 54,97,351/- paid under protest on the cost of secondary packing. Vide the adjudication order dated 18-6-1998, the refund claim application was rejected on the ground that the assessee failed to produce documentary evidence to prove that the incidence of duty has not been passed on to any other person as required under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944. The matter was contested in different appellate forums by both the sides and ultimately the same was resolved vide order dated 31-3-2005 by the Comm....
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....5-2005, filed in pursuance to the Final Order of Commissioner (Appeals) dated 31-3-2005; that the refund amount having been sanctioned on 22-8-2005, which is within the period of three months from the date of application for refund, there is no delay in sanction of refund, and accordingly, no interest is required to be paid. The learned AR appearing for the Revenue has cited the following decisions to substantiate that in absence of delay in sanction of refund, no interest is payable to the respondent. (a) Coronation Spinning India v. Commissioner of Customs, Kolkata [2004 (170) E.L.T. 143 (Tri.-LB)] (b) Indian Thermoplastics (P) Ltd. v. Commissioner of Customs, Kolkata [2004 (164) E.L.T. 15....
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....ntral Excise Act, 1944. Sub-section (1) of the said section provides that any person desirous of claiming refund of duty, may file an application before the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Central Excise in the prescribed form and the documents that may be necessary for deciding the application are also to be submitted. As per the requirement of sub-section (2) of the said section, the empowered authority under the statute is required to hold enquiry; and thereafter, if he is satisfied that the duty amount paid by the applicant is refundable, then an order is required to be passed in sanctioning the refund in favour of the applicant. 7. Section 11BB of the said Act deals with the provisions for payment of interest on delayed sanction....
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....orities are required to pay interest on the refund amount paid belatedly. The explanation added to Section 11BB of the Act is in context with or has the relevance only for the purposes of sub-section (2) of Section 11B, and not for the purpose of the period of computation of the interest liability. 10. In the present case, it is an admitted fact on record that the refund claim application filed by the respondent on 19-3-1998 was ultimately sanctioned vide the adjudication order dated 22-8-2005, i.e., after a lapse of more than seven years. As per the statutory mandates of Section 11B read with Section 11BB of the Act, the time limit for payment of the refund amount to the respondent by the Central Excise authorities (without interest)....
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....cant shall be paid interest at such rate, as may be fixed by the Central Government, on expiry of a period of three months from the date of receipt of the application. The Explanation appearing below Proviso to Section 11BB introduces a deeming fiction that where the order for refund of duty is not made by the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise or Deputy Commissioner of Central Excise but by an Appellate Authority or the Court, then for the purpose of this Section the order made by such higher Appellate Authority or by the Court shall be deemed to be an order made under sub-section (2) of Section 11B of the Act. It is clear that the Explanation has nothing to do with the postponement of the date from which interest becomes payable und....