2012 (10) TMI 266 - CGOVT - Central Excise

Rebate claim alleged that goods were exported under claim of rebate under Rule 18 of Central Excise Rules, 2002 and also simultaneously under claim of duty drawback under Customs, Central Excise Duties and Service Tax Drawback Rules, 1995 Held that - As per Condition No. 12 of Notification No. 68/2007-Cus. (N.T.), dated 16-7-2007, drawback can be claimed only on the condition that no cenvat credit facility has been availed for any of the inputs used in the manufacturer of the export product and another condition is that if the goods are exported under bond or claim of rebate of duty of Central Excise it should be certified that no cenvat facility has been availed for the goods under export - applicant has violated the condition 12(ii) of Notification No. 68/07-Cus. (N.T.), dated 16-7-2007 as he has availed cenvat facility for goods under export in as much as duty on exported goods was paid from the cenvat credit account. Despite this violation, applicant has availed drawback claim for both excise and customs portion. In such a situation extending the benefit of rebate under Rule 18 of Central Excise Rules, 2002 will definitely amount to double benefit - revision application is rejected

Issues:
1. Interpretation of Cenvat Credit Rules and Duty Drawback Rules.
2. Compliance with Notification No. 68/2007-Cus. (N.T.).
3. Claim of rebate and duty drawback simultaneously.
4. Double benefit availing concern.
5. Violation of conditions for drawback claim.
6. Applicability of relevant statutes and instructions.

Analysis:

1. Interpretation of Cenvat Credit Rules and Duty Drawback Rules:
The revision application challenged the order-in-appeal that alleged the applicant wrongly utilized the Cenvat credit. The applicant argued that there is no one-to-one correlation between input and output in the Cenvat Credit Rules, unlike the Duty Drawback Rules. The applicant cited relevant judgments to support their claim. However, the reviewing authority found that the applicant availed Cenvat credit facility for duty payment on exported goods, leading to the denial of the rebate claim.

2. Compliance with Notification No. 68/2007-Cus. (N.T.):
The reviewing authority pointed out that the applicant failed to comply with Condition No. 12 of the notification, which mandates no Cenvat credit facility should be availed for inputs used in the export product. As the applicant utilized Cenvat credit for duty payment on exported goods, the sanction of drawback was deemed erroneous.

3. Claim of rebate and duty drawback simultaneously:
The applicant contended that they did not avail Cenvat credit on inputs used for manufacturing exported goods, thus justifying the claim of drawback. However, the authorities found that the applicant violated the conditions for drawback claim by availing Cenvat facility for exported goods' duty payment, leading to the denial of the rebate claim.

4. Double benefit availing concern:
The reviewing authority highlighted that allowing both rebate and drawback benefits would amount to double benefit for the applicant. Citing relevant circulars and judgments, it was established that no double benefit is permissible when claiming only the customs portion of the drawback.

5. Violation of conditions for drawback claim:
The Government noted that the applicant violated the conditions specified in Notification No. 68/07-Cus. (N.T.) by availing Cenvat facility for duty payment on exported goods. Despite this violation, the applicant claimed drawback for both excise and customs portions, leading to the rejection of the rebate claim.

6. Applicability of relevant statutes and instructions:
In line with the applicable statutes and instructions, the Government upheld the order-in-appeal, emphasizing adherence to the plain reading of rules and notifications. Citing Supreme Court judgments, the Government concluded that there was no infirmity in the impugned order-in-appeal and rejected the revision application for lacking merit.

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