TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2024 (12) TMI 752
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....s no unjust enrichment in the present case. 2.1 In this fact the appellant is entitled for the interest on sanctioned refund after three months from the date of application till the date of sanction of the refund. He placed reliance on the following judgments:- * Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. v/s UOI [2011 (273) E.L.T. 3 (S.C.) = 2012 (27) S.T.R. 193 (S.C.)] * Swaraj Mazda Ltd v/s. UOI [2009 (235) E.L.T. 788 (Bom.)] * CCE, Hyderabad v/s. Paris Waves [2008 (224) E.L.T. 295 (Tri. Bang.)] * J.K. Cement Works v/s. Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise & Customs [2004 (170) E.L.T. 4 (Raj.)] * Assistant Commissioner v/s. J.K. Cement Work [2005 (179) E.L.T. A150 (S.C.)] * Jayanta Glass Ltd v/s. CCE, Kolkata [2004 (165) E.L.T. 516 (Tri.-LB)] * CCE, Madurai v/s. Madura Coats Pvt. Ltd. [2008 (228) E.L.T. 433 (Tri.-Chennai)] * Hamdard (Wakf) Laboratories v/s. UOI [2005 (188) E.L.T. 476 (All.)] * R.K. Chemicals v/s. CC (Import), Mumbai [2013 (287) E.L.T. 382 (Tri.-Mum.)] * South India Paper Mills Ltd. [2009 (238) E.L.T. 651 (Tri.-Chennai)] * South India Paper Mills Ltd [2014 (307) E.L.T. 246 (Mad.)] * Jindal Drugs Ltd 2014 (305) ELT 396 (Bom.) 3. Shri Anand Kumar, Learn....
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....o Rs. 4,84,52,227/- between April and May 2003. However, the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, vide order dated 23rd June 2004, rejected the claim. Aggrieved, the appellant filed an appeal before the Commissioner, Central Excise (Appeals), who by his order dated 30th September 2004 allowed the appeal and sanctioned the rebate claim. Being aggrieved by the said order, the revenue filed an appeal before the Joint Secretary, Government of India, Ministry of Finance, but without any success. Ultimately rebate was sanctioned on 11th January, 2005. On 21st April 2005, appellant filed a claim for interest under Section 11BB of the Act on account of delay in payment of rebate. 3. A show cause notice was issued to the appellant on 5th July 2005, proposing to reject their claim for interest on the ground that rebate had been sanctioned to them within three months of the receipt of order of the Commissioner (Appeals) dated 30th September, 2004. Upon consideration of the reply submitted by the appellant, relying on Explanation to Section 11BB of the Act, the Assistant Commissioner rejected the claim. 4. Against the said order, the appellant filed an appeal before the Commissioner....
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....payment of equitable interest. According to the learned counsel, the said decision clearly holds that an assessee is entitled to interest under the said Section after the expiry of three months from the date of receipt of application for payment of refund. In support of the claim, learned counsel commended us to the order passed by this Court in Union of India Vs. U.P. Twiga Fiber Glass Ltd. 2009 (243) E.L.T. A27 (S.C.), whereby the appeal preferred by the revenue against the decision of the Allahabad High Court has been dismissed. In the said decision, following the decision of the Rajasthan High Court in J.K. Cement Works Vs. Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise & Customs 2004 (170) E.L.T. 4, the Allahabad High Court had held that the relevant date for the purpose of determining the liability to pay interest under Section 11BB of the Act is with reference to the date of application, laying claim for refund and not the actual determination of refund under Section 11B(2) of the Act. To bolster the claim, learned counsel placed strong reliance on a number of Circulars on the point, issued by the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Govt. of India, clarifying that with the....
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....duty of excise and interest, if any, paid on such duty paid by the applicant is refundable, he may make an order accordingly and the amount so determined shall be credited to the Fund: Provided that the amount of duty of excise and interest, if any, paid on such duty of excise as determined by the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise or Deputy Commissioner of Central Excise under the foregoing provisions of this subsection shall, instead of being credited to the Fund, be paid to the applicant, if such amount is relatable to----- (a) rebate of duty of excise on excisable goods exported out of India or on excisable materials used in the manufacture of goods which are exported out of India; (b) unspent advance deposits lying in balance in the applicant's current account maintained with the Commissioner of Central Excise; (c) refund of credit of duty paid on excisable goods used as inputs in accordance with the rules made, or any notification issued, under this Act; (d) the duty of excise and interest, if any, paid on such duty paid by the manufacturer, if he had not passed on the incidence of such duty and interest, if any, paid on such duty to any other person; ....
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....r of the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, under sub-section (2) of section 11B, the order passed by the Commissioner (Appeals), Appellate Tribunal or, as the case may be, by the Court shall be deemed to be an order passed under the said sub-section (2) for the purposes of this section." 9. It is manifest from the afore-extracted provisions that Section 11BB of the Act comes into play only after an order for refund has been made under Section 11B of the Act. Section 11BB of the Act lays down that in case any duty paid is found refundable and if the duty is not refunded within a period of three months from the date of receipt of the application to be submitted under sub-section (1) of Section 11B of the Act, then the applicant shall be paid interest at such rate, as may be fixed by the Central Government, on expiry of a period of three months from the date of receipt of the application. The Explanation appearing below Proviso to Section 11BB introduces a deeming fiction that where the order for refund of duty is not made by the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise or Deputy Commissioner of Central Excise but by an Appellate Authority or the Court, then for the purpose....
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....ons of section 11BB of Central Excise Act, 1944 that wherever the refund/rebate claim is sanctioned beyond the prescribed period of three months of filing of the claim, the interest thereon shall be paid to the applicant at the notified rate. Board has been receiving a large number of representations from claimants to say that interest due to them on sanction of refund/rebate claims beyond a period of three months has not been granted by Central Excise formations. On perusal of the reports received from field formations on such representations, it has been observed that in majority of the cases, no reason is cited. Wherever reasons are given, these are found to be very vague and unconvincing. In one case of consequential refund, the jurisdictional Central Excise officers had taken the view that since the Tribunal had in its order not directed for payment of interest, no interest needs to be paid. 2. In this connection, Board would like to stress that the provisions of section 11BB of Central Excise Act, 1944 are attracted automatically for any refund sanctioned beyond a period of three months. The jurisdictional Central Excise Officers are not required to wait for instructions f....
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....imant within three months from the date of such application or in the case governed by proviso to Section 11BB, non-payment within three months from the date of the commencement of Section 11BB brings in the starting point of liability to pay interest, notwithstanding the date on which decision has been rendered by the competent authority as to whether the amount is to be transferred to Welfare Fund or to be paid to the applicant needs no interference." The special leave petition is dismissed. No costs." 14. At this stage, reference may be made to the decision of this Court in Shreeji Colour Chem Industries (supra), relied upon by the Delhi High Court. It is evident from a bare reading of the decision that insofar as the reckoning of the period for the purpose of payment of interest under Section 11BB of the Act is concerned, emphasis has been laid on the date of receipt of application for refund. In that case, having noted that application by the assessee requesting for refund, was filed before the Assistant Commissioner on 12th January 2004, the Court directed payment of Statutory interest under the said Section from 12th April 2004 i.e. after the expiry of a period of thre....