TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (2) TMI 1230
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....fter referred to as assessee), are engaged in manufacture of CTD bars and rods. The department has alleged that the assessee has indulged in evasion of central excise duty by purchasing raw materials viz., MS ingots without accounting and utilizing the same in the manufacture and clearance of CTD bars without accounting and without payment of excise duty during the period October, 2004 to 13.06.2006. Accordingly, SCN dated 31.02.2008 was issued by the department has relied upon the conclusion derived from seized private documents recovered from the premises of the Managing Director of the assesse and oral evidences by the persons concerned on these documents etc., to project the alleged clandestine removal of CTD bars to the extent of 15249....
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....tatements were recorded from the buyers of CTD bars for the period prior to 01.04.2006. iii) Demand for this period is based on loose sheets of "advance files" which details of payments made to the labour contractors for loading / unloading of raw materials and finished goods. The basis of demand is projected in Annexure A2 to A5 to the SCN. A2 is based on alleged higher production of CTD bars, for which there is no evidence unearthed by the department. The appellant did not have the required capacity for production of so much quantity as alleged by the department. Even as per the annual capacity certified by the department, the production works out only to 598.20 MT during 1998. In fact, the average monthly production for the period 200....
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....tment. On the other hand, on behalf of the department, I-du AR vehemently opposes the appeals filed by the assessee and the other two noticees. He also made oral submissions which can be broadly summarized as under:- i) The quantity of unaccounted raw materials received by the assessee has been well established from the separate investigation conducted by DGCEI against suppliers M/s. Vigneswara Steels Pvt. Ltd., Sri Vinayaga Alloys Pvt. Ltd., Sri Vela Smelters Pvt. Ltd., Shri Dhandapani Smelters (sale Dvn.) etc. Out of these entities, M/s. Vigneswara Steels Pvt. Ltd., and Sri Vinayaga Alloys Pvt. Ltd., had approached the Settlement Commission and admitted the duty liability vide Final Orders No.57 & 58/2007 dated 25.09.2007. Hence, th....
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.... quantity of CTD bars loaded is available in these documents. However, on perusal of such payment records available in pages 49 to 77 of the compilation, we find that the exact goods and quantities loaded are not clear, at least in many of the documents perused. For example for the months of October, 2004, December, 2004 and January, 2005 there are only details of the total wages paid; however, no information is forth coming about the nature of work, or for that matter, the nature of goods loaded. In many of the other documents, while separate entries are available for loading "melting scrap", there is no specific indication of loading of CTD bars. In any case, in our view, the recovery of such payments made for loading can only become an a....
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.... evidences available on for a limited period, cannot be extrapolated to a presumption that such activity had been on-going for a larger period. We find that the available evidences as capsuled in the annexures to the SCN is limited to a few months only viz. from April, 2006 to June, 2006. Any confirmation of duty liability can only be based only on the evidences which have been relied upon in the annexures to the SCN. The appellants have in any case, conceded any differential duty liability that may arise in respect of the period covered for the period April, 2006 to June. 2006. 6.4 In the departmental appeal (E/710/2009) there is a grievance that the adjudicating authority has not taken stock of the "letter pad" which allegedly containe....