2014 (1) TMI 165 - AT - Central Excise

Clandestine Removal of Goods Clearance made by improperly declaring the retail sale price Undervaluation of Tiles - Waiver of Pre-deposit Held that - The Tribunal has been following judgment of Hon ble High Court of Gujarat that an assessee should deposit 8% of the amount of duty confirmed - The appellant has deposited an amount which is more than 8% of the duty liability - the amount already deposited is enough to hear and dispose the appeals Pre-deposits waived till the disposal Stay granted.

Summary

Issues: Stay Petitions for waiver of pre-deposit of duty, interest, penalty; Under-valuation of goods; Compliance with deposit requirements; Application of High Court judgment on deposit percentage.

In the judgment by the Appellate Tribunal CESTAT AHMEDABAD, the issue revolved around Stay Petitions filed by the Appellant seeking waiver of pre-deposit of duty amounting to Rs.76,66,178, along with interest and penalty. The adjudicating authority had confirmed these amounts due to the Appellant's under-valuation of tiles by improperly declaring the retail sale price. The Appellant had already deposited Rs.30 lakhs during the proceedings. The Appellant's counsel argued that this deposit exceeded the 8% of the duty confirmed, citing a precedent set by the Hon'ble High Court of Gujarat for similar cases.

Upon careful consideration of the submissions and records, the Tribunal acknowledged that the amount deposited by the Appellant surpassed the 8% of the duty liability, as per the High Court's directive. Consequently, the Tribunal deemed the deposited amount sufficient to hear and dispose of the appeals. Therefore, the Tribunal allowed the applications for waiver of pre-deposit of the remaining amounts in question and stayed the recovery until the appeals were resolved. The judgment highlighted the importance of compliance with deposit requirements and the application of relevant legal precedents in determining the sufficiency of deposits in such cases.