TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2004 (2) TMI 69
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....under the brand "ARR" with a photograph of Shri A.R. Ramaswamy, the founder of ARR group of Companies. The Respondents claimed benefit of Notification No. 1/93-C.E., dated 28-2-1993. The said Notification grants exemption, amongst others, to scented supari. However Clause 4 of the Notification provides that the exemption contained in the Notification shall not apply to specified goods bearing a brand name or trade name (registered or not) of another person. Explanation IX to this Notification reads as follows : "Explanation IX : - "Brand name" or "trade name" shall mean a brand name or trade name, whether registered or not, that is to say a name or a mark, code number, design number, drawing number, symbol, monogram, label, signature or ....
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....ompany "A" exemption under notification No. 175/86, dated 1-3-1986 on the ground that the trade mark/brand name belonged to the company "B" which was not eligible for the said exemption. For this the Assistant Collector relied on the amendment carried out to Notification No. 175/86, dated 1-3-1986 by Notification No. 223/87, dated 22-9-1987 inserting paragraph 7 in the former notification. The matter has been examined by the Board.3. It is observed that as per section 8 of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958, a trade mark can be registered in respect of any or all goods. In other words, a trademark need not necessarily be in respect of all goods unless the registration has been so acquired. It is, therefore, quite possible and perm....
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....me goods for which the trade mark is registered. In coming to this conclusion we are afraid that the Tribunal has done something which is not permissible to be done in law. It is settled law that Exemption Notifications have to be strictly construed. They must be interpreted on their own wording. Wordings of some other Notification are of no benefit in construing a particular Notification. Clause 4 of this Notification and the explanation (set out hereinabove) make it clear that the exemption will not apply if the specified goods (i.e. scented supari) bears a brand or trade name of another person. Neither in clause 4 of the Notification nor in Explanation IX is it provided that the specified goods must be the same or similar to the goods fo....
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....ent to disentitle the person from getting exemption under the Notification. In this case admittedly the brand name or trade name is the words "ARR" with the photograph of the founder of the group. Merely because the registered trade mark is not entirely reproduced does not take the Respondents out of Clause 4 and make them eligible to the benefit of the Notification. 8.Reliance was also placed upon the Circular No. 52/52/94-CX., dated 1-9-1994 wherein the Board has clarified that if names or marks which are not owned by any particular person are used then the use of such names or marks would not disentitle those persons from the benefit of the Notification. In our view this Circular has no relevance at all to the facts of this case. In t....