AI Drafter 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (12) TMI 901
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.... 1.1 The appellants are engaged in manufacture of Iron & Steel products namely, MS Ingot, TMT Bar etc. They are also availing the facility of Cenvat credit of duty paid on inputs and capital goods under Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004. Appellant Shri Pankaj Agrawal is the Director of appellant M/s. Pankaj Ispat Limited. The appellant Shri Narendra Agrawal, Proprietor of M/s. Amit steels is found engaged in trading activity of iron and steel products. On 07.04.2015 a search was conducted in his premises (factory as well as residential) by preventive officers of the Central Excise, Hqrs, Raipur. Based upon the information that M/s. Amit Steels is involved in facilitating clandestine removal of excisable goods by some of the iron and steel manufac....
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....e been confirmed by Commissioner (Appeals) vide his order bearing no. 454-18-19 dated 30.11.2018. Still being aggrieved, the appellants are before this Tribunal. 2. I have heard Ms. J. Kainaat, learned Advocate for the appellants and Shri Divey Sethi, learned Authorized Representative for the department. 3. Learned Counsel for the appellants has mentioned that the demand against M/s. Pankaj Ispat Ltd. and Shri Pankaj Agrawal has wrongly been confirmed as there is no incriminating evidence against any of them. No search was conducted in their premises, none of the documents has direct bearing as far as their alleged involvement in clandestine removal of their finished products is concerned. The findings of Adjudicating Authority are no....
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....bmissions learned Departmental Representative has impressed upon that Shri Narendra Agrawal was found to be a master mind in facilitating the manufacturers of MS Ingots, TMT Bars etc. while clearing their finished goods without payment of duty. It is due to the said reason that his premises only were searched. The documents recovered from his premises have meticulously been appreciated by the Adjudicating Authorities below, based whereupon that the demand has rightly been confirmed. Learned DR has impressed upon the findings in para 6 (6.1 to 6.5) of the order under challenge. Impressing upon no infirmity in those findings, the order under challenge is prayed to be upheld and three of the appeals are prayed to be dismissed. 5. Having hea....
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....n his statement dated 07.04.2015 had stated that word "Vikki" stands for M/s. Pankaj Ispat Limited. I do not find any document in any of these appeals which may corroborate the said statement of Shri Narendra Agrawal or such other document which sufficiently proves that "Vikki" stands for M/s. Pankaj Ispat Limited from no stretch of imagination there seems any correlation between the two. The findings under para 6.2 and 6.3 of Commissioner (Appeals) order about the noticed clearance of 491.400 MTs of TMT Bar is based upon the clearances as were found recorded against "Vikki". Since, mere statement of Shri Narendra Agrawal which has not undergone the test of Section 9D of the Central Excise Act, 1994, cannot solely be relied upon to hold tha....
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....49 (Tri.-Del.) and CCE & ST, Ludhiana Vs. Anand Founders & Engineers - 2016 (331) ELT 340 (P&H). It stand held in all these judgements that the findings of clandestine removal cannot be upheld based upon the third party documents, unless there is clinching evidence of clandestine manufacture and removal of the goods" 7. As far as the proof of allegations of clandestine removal is concerned, it has been a settled law that such grave allegations cannot be confirmed merely on the third party evidence. There otherwise should be clinching evidence about nature of purchase of raw materials, use of electricity, sale of final products, clandestine removals, the mode and flow back of funds, demands cannot be confirmed solely on the basis of presu....
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....ting Authority has failed to appreciate the lacunae of investigation and also the absence of compliance of mandatory statutory provisions. 9. With respect of appellant Shri Narendra Agrawal, this Tribunal in B.K. Rolling Mills Pvt Ltd. (supra) which was arising out of the same search as in the present case, has already dropped penalty against him. I do not find any such evidence in his appeal which may differentiate his case as with respect to the present appeal. It is accordingly held that the confirmation of imposition of penalty upon Shri Narendra Agrawal is also wrong due to the lack of cogent evidence about him in facilitating the alleged clandestine removal of the finished goods of manufacturers of TMT Bars and MS Ingots. 10. Fr....