2004 (7) TMI 531 - AT - Central Excise

Summary

Issues:
1. Denial of benefit of exemption under Notification No. 63/95-C.E. for supply made to the Ministry of Defence due to goods not being directly cleared to the Ministry.
2. Request for waiver of pre-deposit of disputed amount based on previous Tribunal judgments.
3. Consideration of whether the supply made by the job worker should be treated as supply made by the assessee to the Ministry of Defence.

Analysis:
1. The appellant, a PSU unit, sought exemption under Notification No. 63/95-C.E. for supplying goods to the Ministry of Defence. The Commissioner denied the benefit, citing that the goods were cleared to a sister unit before reaching the Ministry. However, it was acknowledged that the goods ultimately reached the Ministry. The Tribunal observed that the supply made by the job worker should be considered as made by the assessee to the Ministry of Defence. Therefore, the denial of exemption based on indirect clearance was not justified.

2. The appellant's representative referred to previous Tribunal judgments in similar cases, such as Tata Electronic Devpt. Services v. CCE, Uday Computer Aided Mfg. (P) Ltd. v. CCE, and Delco Incorporated v. CCE, where waiver of pre-deposit was granted. Relying on these precedents, the appellant requested a waiver of the pre-deposit of the disputed amount. The Tribunal, after considering the submissions and the covered judgments, granted the stay application, waiving the pre-deposit and staying recovery until the appeal's disposal.

3. The Tribunal highlighted that the goods cleared through a sister unit to the Ministry of Defence should not be a reason to deny the exemption under the notification. The Tribunal found the case to be prima facie in favor of the appellants. Consequently, the Tribunal allowed the waiver of pre-deposit and stayed the recovery until the appeal's final hearing, scheduled for 30th November 2004, considering the significant amount involved in the matter.