TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2008 (6) TMI 144
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....and Customs Notification No. 11/97 dt. 1-3-97 (Sl. No. 116). Both the Notifications provided for concessional rate of duty for "horological raw materials imported for the manufacture of components of wrist watches, mechanical or quartz analog." As a condition for availing the benefit of the first Notification, the appellants executed a bond binding themselves to pay on demand differential duty on such quantity of the goods as was not proved to have been used for the above purpose. They were also required to produce a certificate from the Asst. Commissioner of Central Excise in whose jurisdiction their factory was situated to the effect that the imported raw materials had been used in the manufacture of components of wrist watches. The corre....
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....he importer, the department took the stand that the end-use condition attached to the above Notifications had been violated and, therefore, the difference between the duty leviable on the imported materials but for the Exemption under the Notifications and the duty already paid at the time of importation was recoverable from the party. It was also found that some of the imported raw materials had been used in the manufacture of "strap parts", which were not specified under any of the Notifications for concessional rate of duty. On this basis, a show-cause notice dt. 4-6-98 was issued demanding differential BCD and differential CVD totalling to Rs. 6,38,396.86 under Rule 8 of the 1996 Rules and proposing to impose penalty under Section 112 o....
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.... has referred to a decision of this Bench rendered in their own case reported as Commissioner v. Titan Industries Ltd., 2007 (214) E.L.T. 316 (Tri.-Chennai). It has been argued that the purport of the Notifications was to grant the benefit of concessional rate of duty to importers of horological raw materials meant for the manufacture of components of wrist watches. It has been argued that, to achieve this purpose, the entries given at Sl. Nos. 21 and 22 of List 3/List 4 have to be liberally construed. Upon such construction, cross-utilization of the imported raw materials would be permissible. In other words, according to the ld. counsel, raw materials pro cured for Bezel Case of wrist watch could be used for Bezel Ring and raw materials p....
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....e manufacture of Bezel Ring or Back Cover of wrist watch. Similarly, cold- rolled stainless steel strips imported for the purpose of manufacturing Bezel Ring or Back Cover cannot be used in the manufacture of Bezel Case. This is the plain meaning of the entries at Sl. Nos. 21 and 22 of List 3/List 4 attached to the relevant Notification. The description of goods given at Sl. No. 122 of the first Notification and at Sl.No.116 of the second Notification is also significant. It reads "the horological raw materials specified in List ...." The word "specified" used in this description of goods cannot be lost sight of. It rules out the scope for cross- utilization of raw materials mentioned at Sl. Nos. 21 and 22 of the list. Admittedly, the appel....