TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2020 (1) TMI 802
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....s, all three appeals are disposed of by this common order. 4. The following substantial questions of law are proposed by the Revenue: "2(a) Whether in the facts and circumstances of the case, the Hon'ble Custom, Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Western Zonal Bench, Ahmedabad has committed an error in giving perverse findings on facts which are without any evidence and contrary to the material evidences available on record? (b) Whether in the facts and circumstances of the case, the Hon'ble Custom, Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Western Zonal Bench, Ahmedabad has erred in allowing the Appeal merely on the basis of submissions made by the assessee that too without any contrary evidence and without examining the material evidences on record discussed by the adjudicating authority? (c) Whether in the facts and circumstances of the case, the Hon'ble Custom, Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Western Zonal Bench, Ahmedabad has erred in coming to the conclusion that charges of clandestine removal on the basis of pen driver data are not sustainable? (d) Whether the assessee can avail CENVAT credit ....
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....ies like signature etc. as being owner of the locker. Data retrieved from these Pen Drives were in the form of computerized ledgers, consisting of main ledgers such as purchase and sale of S.S.C.R. Coils, details of payment received and made vide cheque and cash, capital of directors of M/s. SFL, Profit and Loss Account and Balance Sheet etc. and relevant party ledgers pertaining to the period from April 2009 to March 2012. 6.2 During investigation, the details contained in these handwritten Gujarati Sheets were compared with the details/data retrieved from seized Pen Drives and it was observed that the details such as date of transaction, name of party, quantity of the goods, Invoice No. of M/s. SFL, cheque nos. etc. were found to be tallied, except the fact that the amount in handwritten Gujarati Sheets were mentioned by reducing amount by one digit i.e. if any transaction entered in Pen Drives as Rs. 100/then in handwritten sheet. It was shown as Rs. 10/. Further it was also observed that handwritten data show all transaction of a day while the retrieved pen drives data show para-wise transaction covering a certain period. All these facts were admitted by Shri Ramesh M Sha....
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.... Gujarat had: (i) suppressed their production of final goods S.S.C.R. Coils in their books of account and cleared the said unaccounted S.S.C.R Coils (as detailed in their Ledeger Account "Bombay Sales") without the cover of valid documents/invoices and without payment of central excise duty due thereon and thereby evaded payment of central excise duty amount to Rs. 13,22,68,484/during the period from April 2009 to 10.01.2012. (ii) suppressed their production of final S.S.C.R. Coils in their books of account and cleared the said unaccounted S.S.C.R Coils (as detailed in their Ledger Account "Smi (Cash)") without cover of valid documents/invoices and without payment of Central Excise Duty due thereon and thereby have evaded payment of Central Excise Duty amounting to Rs. 86,71,119/during the period from April 2009 to 10.07.2012; (iii) Suppressed their production of final goods S.S.C.R. Coils in their books of account and cleared the said unaccounted S.S.C.R. Coils (as detailed in their Ledger Account "Smi (Cash)" without the cover of valid documents/invoices and without payment of central excise duty due thereon and thereby evaded payment of Central Excise ....
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....emovals were being kept by him at the premises of Lottery/Ice Cream Stall of Shri Manoj Tanna situated opposite Sunrise Building (Office of M/s. SFL), C.P.Tank Road, Mumbai 400004. The keys of the lockers were kept with Manoj Tanna only to avoid detection. Moreover, the handwritten Gujarati Sheets were maintained by him by placing decimal after one digit from right of an amount of artificially reduce the data by 1/10th, adopting illicit tactics to deceive the government exchequer. Thus, his intention was quite obviously, not to pay legitimate of excise, by manipulating the business of statutory records/returns, and thus they had acted to defraud the Government exchequer. Shri Kartik R Shah, Director of M/s. SFL admitted part of clandestine transactions and also paid an amount of Rs. 80,00,000/towards their Central Excise duty liability arising out of the above discussed clandestine transactions effected by M/s. SFL. 6.6 Accordingly, Show Cause Notice No. DGCEI/MZU/I&OS'C'/12(4)104/12 dated 06.05.2014 was issued to them proposing recovery of central excise duty and inadmissible cenvat credit totally amounting to Rs. 21,83,98,186/(Ruppees Twenty One Crore Eighty Three Lakh Ninety ....
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....recorded his statement to ascertain the truth. Even if the statements of director are considered inculpatory the same cannot be relied upon in absence of corroboration with material evidence as held in case of Tejwal Dyestuff Ind. Vs. 2007 (216) ELT 310 (TRI) and 2009 (234) ELT 242 (GUJ.). Thus the statement of directors cannot lead to inference that the goods stated in "Bombay Sales" ledgers are of Appellant. We also find that the brokers have even stated that they have taken the goods from Vasai Godown of M/s SFPL. In such case there is no reason to hold that the Appellant has dealt with M/s SFL. Thus in both cases i.e "Bombay Sales" and "Smi Cash Sales" apart from the statements which are even contradictory no corroborative evidence. The Appellant has placed reliance upon various judgments to canvas their point that in absence of corroborative evidence no demand can be made. We find that no corroborative evidence has been stated in show cause notice in the form of receipt of unaccounted raw material, transportation of unaccounted such raw material to SFL factory, consumption of unaccounted raw material, production of unaccounted finished goods, production recor....