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TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (10) TMI 1247
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....he matter. The present appeal flows from the fresh decision in order-in-original no. 05-06/CX/2007 dated 30th April 2007 of Commissioner of Central Excise, Pune-III which has re-adjudicated the matter while, at the same time on request of the assessee, disposing off a second show cause notice dated 7th March 2002. 2. The issue in dispute was the entitlement for benefit of notification no. 8/97-CE available to '100% export oriented units', such as that of the appellant, operating under the eponymous scheme in the EXIM Policy (now designated as the Foreign Trade Policy) for the clearance of goods into the 'domestic tariff area' if manufactured out of exclusively indigenous raw material; such clearances were required to discharge duties that ....
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....factured exclusively from indigenously procured cotton. The remand by the Tribunal was specific in directing the original authority to consider the contents of the balance-sheet adduced by the appellant for the first time ever. It was mandated on the part of the original authority to delve into the conclusions that could be drawn from the balance sheet referred to; any other interpretation of the contents of the order would be non-contextual. It would appear that the audited balance sheet, evidencing specific quantities and values of imported and indigenously procured cotton would imply the existence of records that facilitated such segregation for statutory audit. The direction of the Tribunal was intended to that end. The original authori....
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....is to be lost sight of and the wording used therein ignored. Where the wording of the notification is clear and unambiguous, it has to be given effect to. Exemption cannot be denied by giving a construction not justified by the wording of the notification." 26. In Commissioner of Central Excise, Trichy v. Rukmani Pakkwell Traders, (2004) 11 SCC 801, this Court has also held : "5. ... It is settled law that exemption notifications have to be strictly construed. They must be interpreted on their own wording. Wordings of some other notification are of no benefit in construing a particular notification." 27. In Kohinoor Elastics (P) Ltd. v. Commissioner of Central Excise, Indore, (2005) 7 SCC 528 = 2005 (188) E.L.T. 3 (S.C.), this Court ....
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.... Court has held : "8. It is settled law that in order to claim benefit of a notification, a party must strictly comply with the terms of the notification. If on wording of the notification the benefit is not available then by stretching the words of the notification or by adding words to the notification benefit cannot be conferred. The Tribunal has based its decision on a decision delivered by it in Rukmani Pakkwell Traders v. C.C.E. We have already overruled the decision in that case. In this case also we hold that the decision of the Tribunal is unsustainable. It is accordingly set aside." 30. In Commissioner of Customs (Preventive), Gujarat v. Reliance Petroleum Limited, (2008) 7 SCC 220 = 2008 (227) E.L.T. 3 (S.C.), this Court has....
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.... the notification is not fulfilled, the party is not entitled to the benefit of that notification. The rule regarding exemptions is that exemptions should generally be strictly interpreted but beneficial exemptions having their purpose as encouragement or promotion of certain activities should be liberally interpreted. This composite rule is not stated in any particular judgment in so many words. In fact, majority of judgments emphasise that exemptions are to be strictly interpreted while some of them insist that exemptions in fiscal statutes are to be liberally interpreted giving an apparent impression that they are contradictory to each other. But this is only apparent. A close scrutiny will reveal that there is no real contradiction amon....