2011 (8) TMI 287 - AT - Central Excise

Refund - payment of demand arising out of differential duty - Notification No.51/93 dated 28.2.93 - Held that - the counsel gave up the challenge to the demand of differential duty - He fairly conceded that demand was perfectly valid Apparently the appellants had not been able to satisfy the Tribunal that the payment of duty to the tune of Rs.5, 70, 000/- relating to the period was unjustified.

Summary

Issues:
Challenge to order of refund dismissal based on previous tribunal order and waiver of claim for refund.

Analysis:
The appellants challenged the order of refund dismissal, primarily arguing that a previous Tribunal order had justified their claim for a refund of Rs.5,70,000. However, the Commissioner (Appeals) noted that the appellants had specifically waived this claim under a letter dated 4.7.01. The adjudicating authority had passed an order confirming this waiver, which was not challenged by the appellants and had attained finality. The records did not show any challenge to this order, indicating that it was too late for the appellants to re-agitate the issue.

The Tribunal's order in Appeal No.E/1161/94 had clarified that the demand for payment of differential duty for a specific period was valid, as the Notification relied upon by the appellants did not apply to their case. The appellants failed to convince the Tribunal that the payment of duty amounting to Rs.5,70,000 for that period was unjustified. Therefore, the contention that the claim was based on the previous Tribunal order was found to be incorrect.

In conclusion, the Tribunal found no grounds for interference in the impugned order of refund dismissal. As the appellants had waived their claim for refund of Rs.5,70,000 and the adjudicating authority's order confirming this waiver had attained finality, the appeal was dismissed. The Tribunal upheld the decision of the Commissioner (Appeals) and found no justification for revisiting the issue of the refund claim.