2012 (8) TMI 1090

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....ing excisable goods. The petitioners paid excise duty on clearance of such goods including the value of freight which comes to the total amount of Rs. 7,95,949/-.The case of the petitioners was that said duty was not payable. The petitioners therefore, filed Refund Applications before the Departmental Authority on 13-1-2003, which were received on 20-1-2003. The Adjudicating Authority issued a show cause notice dated 23-4-2003, why such refund claims should not be rejected since the claim was filed beyond the period of limitation prescribed under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944 (hereinafter referred to as the "Act" for short). The petitioners replied to the show cause notice and denied the allegations. The Adjudicating Authority....

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....re however, not concerned with such proceedings. 7. The Apex Court in the case of Mafatlal Industries Ltd. v. Union of India, (1997) 5 SCC 536 = 1997 (89) E.L.T. 247 (S.C.) held as under : "108. The discussion in the judgment yields the following propositions. We may forewarn that these propositions are set out merely for the sake of convenient reference and are not supposed to be exhaustive. In case of any doubt or ambiguity in these propositions, reference must be had to the discussion and propositions in the body of the judgment. (i) Where a refund of tax/duty is claimed on the ground that it has been collected from the petitioner/plaintiff - whether before the commencement of the Central Excises and Customs Laws ....

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....be held to be collected, retained or not refunded, as the case may be, under the authority of law. Both the enactments are self contained enactments providing for levy, assessment, recovery and refund of duties imposed thereunder. Section 11B of the Central Excises and Salt Act and Section 27 of the Customs Act, both before and after the 1991 (Amendment) Act are constitutionally valid and have to be followed and given effect to. Section 72 of the Contract Act has no application to such a claim of refund and cannot form a basis for maintaining a suit or a writ petition. All refund claims except those mentioned under Propositions (ii) below have to be and must be filed and adjudicated under the provisions of the Central Excises and Salt Act o....