TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (9) TMI 621
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....at the order passed by the Adjudicating Authority for denial of credit and imposition of penalty does not warrant any interference. 2. The facts leading to the filing of the instant appeal are stated in brief as follows. The appellant is the manufacturer of sponge iron and for this purpose they require raw material like iron ore, coal and dolomite. Screening of coal and iron ore is an integral and indispensable process in the manufacturing of sponge iron and in that process unavoidable by-product like Iron ore fines, Iron ore concentrates and coal fines are generated which have to be removed else it would stick on the inner wall of the Kiln and reduce the space inside the kiln called accretion, which in turn effect the production adverse....
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.... iii) Penalty should not be imposed upon them under Rule 15(2) of the CENVAT Credit Rule, 2004 read with Section 11AC of the Central Excise Act, 1944. 3. The said show cause notice was adjudicated by the Adjudicating Authority vide Order-in-Original dated 20.7.2020 by which the said authority confirmed the recovery of credit availed by the appellants alongwith interest and penalty. Aggrieved, the appellant filed appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) but the same was rejected by way of impugned order. 4. Now the issue is whether the appellant is liable to pay central excise duty on removal of iron ore fines/iron ore concentrates? Learned counsel for the Appellant submits that in the de-novo proceedings, the lower authority ....
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....e Revenue and perused the case records including the written submissions and case laws cited by the learned Counsel for the appellant. So far as the demand under Rule 3(5) ibid on clearance of Iron Ore Fines/Iron Ore Concentrate is concerned, the issue is no more res integra in view of the decision of this Tribunal in the matter of Nutun Ispat & Power Ltd.(supra) in which also the issue was whether the Iron ore fines, which are not used by the assessee in further manufacture and cleared, will attract the provisions of Rule 3(5) ibid and the Tribunal while giving the finding in favour of the assessee therein, rejected the appeal of the revenue. The relevant paragraph of the said order is extracted as under:- "4. We find that the Rev....
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....at during the manufacturing process of the sponge iron, iron ore fines are generated at the time of screening/grading and crushing, which is nothing but waste and in order to keep the production at a constant pace the aforesaid process of screening is essential and indispensable and iron ore and coal fines contents have to be removed else it would stick on the inner wall of the kiln and reduce the space inside the kiln, called accretion. Therefore it can safely be concluded that the fines etc are by-product or incidental product which cannot be said to be inputs as such which by any stretch of imagination cannot be said to attract the provisions of Rule 3(5) ibid. In view of the aforesaid discussions, this issue is decided in favour of the ....