2019 (1) TMI 964

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....on intelligence had conducted searches at the premises of M/s Mono Steels, Raipur of proprietorship concern which primarily engaged in the business of facilitating sale and purchase of iron and steel products on commission basis. During the search of the office premises of M/s Mono Steels certain incriminating documents in the form of diaries, files, ledgers were recovered which as per the Department were showing clandestine removal of MS Ingots by various induction furnace units including appellant No. I (M/s Hanuman Ispat Pvt. Ltd.) and same were seized by the officers. Similarly, the premises of appellant No. III (M/s Kailash Traders) were also searched by the officers. It is worth mentioning that M/s Kailash Traders are also working as ....

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.... corroboration of excess manufacture of iron ingots clandestine removed without payment of duty of the same. It has been the contention of the learned Advocate that only on the basis of so called confessional statement of proprietor of M/s Mono Steels such a demand of central excise duty cannot be confirmed without any corroboration in the form of transportation of material, manufacture of excess finished goods at the same time no investigations have been undertaken by the Department as to how such a big quantity of finished goods were got manufactured and sold. The Department has failed to identify any buyers of such a huge quantity of clandestinely manufactured and sold goods. 3. The learned Advocate has also assailed the findings of the....

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.... the premises of other than the manufacturer is not maintainable without corroboration and substantiating the preliminary evidences by establishing the excess manufacture, transportation and the identification of the buyer of such excess manufactured and cleared goods. The learned Advocate has also relied upon the decision of Hon'ble Allahabad High Court in the matter of M/s Continental Cement Company vs. Union of India - 2014 (309) E.L.T. 411 (All.) saying that the Hon'ble High Court has prescribed a criteria for confirmation of demand in case of allegedly clandestine manufacture and clearance of excisable goods wherein it has been held that :- "Unless there is clinching evidence of the nature of purchase of raw materials, use of electric....

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....have been recovered from the manufacturing premises of the appellant No. I regarding excess manufacture, clandestine clearance and excess purchases at the end of the buyers of the finished goods. The Department has also not strived to prove that as to how such a huge quantity have been manufactured and as to how such a huge quantity was ultimately sold by the appellant in the market. We also find that the statement of various persons recorded during the course of investigation can only be taken for consideration, if either there is a full proof corroboration or if the same has been confirmed under the cross examination during the course of adjudication. We find that neither there is a full corroboration of alleged excess manufacture or clea....