2007 (5) TMI 452 - AT - Customs

Summary

Issues:
1. Interpretation of Notification No. 20/99-Cus. regarding the entitlement of exemption for imported equipment.
2. Determination of whether the imported item, a Scorpion 2000 mobile crushing plant, qualifies for the benefit of the notification covering cone type crushing plants.
3. Consideration of certificates from the Ministry of Surface Transport and a professor regarding the nature of the equipment.

Analysis:
1. The appeal before the Appellate Tribunal CESTAT, Mumbai concerned the interpretation of Notification No. 20/99-Cus. The dispute revolved around whether the imported Scorpion 2000 mobile crushing plant was eligible for exemption under the notification. The Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) allowed the benefit based on a certificate from the Ministry of Surface Transport, while the revenue contended that the item did not match the description in the notification, which specified "stone crushing (cone type) plant."

2. The key issue was whether the Scorpion 2000 mobile crushing plant, comprising both cone type and jaw crushing components, qualified for the exemption meant for cone type crushing plants only. The revenue argued that since the imported equipment was an integrated plant with both cone and jaw crushing elements, it did not meet the criteria specified in the notification. On the other hand, the respondents maintained that they had fulfilled all conditions of the notification and should not be denied its benefit. The Tribunal examined documents, including a letter from the Government of Karnataka and a certificate from the Ministry of Surface Transport, to determine the nature of the imported equipment.

3. The Tribunal considered the correspondence between the Ministry of Surface Transport and the Ministry of Finance, where the former affirmed that the Scorpion 2000 mobile crushing plant should be treated as an integrated cone type crushing plant eligible for duty exemption. Additionally, a certificate from a professor at IIT Bombay supported this view, stating that the entire assembly, including the feeder, crushers, and vibrating screens, should be considered a stone crushing cone type plant. Based on this evidence and expert opinion, the Tribunal dismissed the revenue's appeal, upholding the decision of the Commissioner (Appeals) to grant the benefit of the exemption to the respondents.