2014 (11) TMI 424 - HC - Central Excise

Restoration of appeal - Appeal dismissed for non compliance with pre deposit order - Benefit of exemption - Bogus receipts - Evasion of payment of duty - abetting the accounting of bogus receipts - Held that - Appellant in this case has complied with the direction of this Court. The delay in filing this appeal and the payment of pre-deposit has already been condoned by this Court by order dated 18.9.2014. Hence, we find that there is enough justification for the appellant to pursue the appeal before the Tribunal, which came to be dismissed on 13.12.2012. Accordingly, we are inclined to allow the appeal setting aside the order passed by the Tribunal dated 13.12.2012 for non-compliance of the order directing pre-deposit - Decided in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues:
Challenge to order of Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal regarding penalty imposition for involvement in offence as a transporter. Disagreement between Judicial Member and Technical Member on pre-deposit amount. Writ Petition challenging Tribunal's order and granting waiver of pre-deposit. Non-compliance with court directions leading to dismissal of appeal by Tribunal. Compliance with court direction by appellant leading to appeal for disposal.

Analysis:
The appellant, a transport contractor, was penalized for involvement in an offence related to Central Excise Duty evasion by M/s.Visaka Industries Ltd. The Commissioner imposed a penalty of &8377; 19.00 lakhs on the appellant. The appellant appealed to the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, where a disagreement arose between the Judicial Member and Technical Member regarding the pre-deposit amount. The matter was referred to the Third Member, who concurred with the Technical Member's decision, leading to a majority order for pre-deposit by the appellant and M/s.Visaka Industries Ltd.

A Writ Petition was filed challenging the Tribunal's order, resulting in a single Judge initially granting full waiver of pre-deposit but later modifying the order to require a pre-deposit of &8377; 2,00,000. Due to a communication issue, the appellant failed to comply with the modified order, leading to the dismissal of the appeal by the Tribunal for non-compliance. Subsequently, the appellant deposited the required amount, filed a Civil Miscellaneous Appeal, and sought condonation of delay, which was granted by the Court.

Upon hearing the parties, the Court noted the appellant's compliance with the court's direction and the condonation of the appeal filing delay. Consequently, the Court allowed the appeal, setting aside the Tribunal's order for non-compliance with the pre-deposit directive. The Tribunal was directed to consider the appeal on its merits and in accordance with the law, effectively restoring the appellant's appeal for further proceedings. No costs were awarded, and the related miscellaneous petition was closed.