AI OCR 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (8) TMI 788
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....ing disposed of by a common order as they arise out of same set of facts and circumstances. 2. After hearing both the sides, we find that the appellant M/s Shiva Poly Plast Pvt. Ltd. is engaged in the manufacture of moulded plastic furniture, household goods falling under Chapter 39 of the 1st schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985. Their factory was visited by the Central Excise officers on 17.06.2006, who conducted various searches and verifications. Simultaneous searches were also conducted at the dealer's premises, transporters, godown as also at the residential premises of the concerned persons. 3. As a result of searches, the Revenue found some stocks at the premises of the dealers being M/s Grover Agency, M/s Jain Furnitur....
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....ere contested by the appellants. It is seen that in respect of the main notice proposing confirmation of demand of duty of Rs. 60.38 lakhs approx, the appellant made a request to cross-examine the number of witnesses including the deponent of various statements. During the course of cross-examination the deponents retracted from their statements and all the dealers denied having purchased any goods from the manufacturer without duty paid invoices. As regards the spiral notebook, the director of the company contented that the statement given by him was retracted at the first available opportunity by not only lodging Police complaint but also by sending affidavits to DGCEI, New Delhi by registered post. He also clarified that the said private....
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....esenting to the DGCEI, New Delhi. Even during the course of cross- examination the said deponent again retracted the statement and submitted that no clandestine activity stands done by them. As the entire case of the Revenue is based upon the entries made in the said diary as also the 18 loose slips without their being any other evidence on record, it is difficult for us to accept the findings of clandestine removal. 8. The appellants had disclosed the names of the raw material suppliers but the Revenue has not contacted any of them except one M/s P. P. Polyplast. The said supplier also did not support the Revenues case and stated during cross-examination that they did not know M/s Shiva Polyplast. The appellants have stated that the entr....
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....nue. Even though the names of the dealers or the buyers along with the names of the raw material suppliers were available in the said diary but no efforts have been made by the Revenue to approach them and record their statements. It is also noticed that the statement of only 3-4 dealers stand recorded out of 29 dealers and the result of the same stand applied in respect of all the dealers. Even the said statements of the dealers stand retracted during the course of cross- examination conducted before the Adjudicating Authority, though no examination-in-chief was conducted thus making the said statements as inadmissible as held by the Hon'ble Punjab and Haryana High Court in the case of Jindal Drugs Pvt. Ltd. V/s Union of India reported as ....
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....idence is required as regards the purchase of raw material, use of extra electricity, sale of final products, transportation, payment, the mode and flow back of funds etc. and demands cannot be confirmed based on presumptions and assumptions. The Hon'ble High Court further observed that the charges of clandestine removal is a serious charge required to be proved by the Revenue by the tangible and sufficient evidences and mere statement of buyers based on their memories was insufficient without support of any corroborative documentary evidences. To the same effect is another decision of the Hon'ble Allahabad High Court in the case of Triveni Engineering & Industries Ltd. V/s Commissioner of Central Excise, Allahabad reported at 2016 (334) E.....
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....hout payment of duty by production of sufficient evidences. Inasmuch as we have already held that there is virtually no evidences on record to show clandestine removal on the part of the appellant, the confirmation of demand in respect of such goods found at the dealer's premises cannot be upheld. We accordingly, set aside the same along with setting aside the confiscations and penalties, if any. 14. Similarly, shortages and excesses found in the assessee's premises which is spread over a period of time being below the permissible tolerance limit as per the provisions of the Standard of Weight and Measures Rules, 1977 and being nominal percentage has to be considered as genuine and not requiring any payment of duty or confiscation. For the....