2016 (4) TMI 494 - AT - Central Excise

Period of limitation - Refund claim under Notification No. 41/2007-ST dated 6.10.2007 - Held that - the refund claim filed by the appellant pertain to the quarter January to March, 2008 and the period for filing the refund claim during the relevant clause of notification was 60 days from the end of the relevant quarter during which the said goods had been exported as per clause 2(E) of Notification. The refund claim was filed by the appellant on 30.06.2008 which was beyond the period of 60 days. This period was extended to six months as per Notification No. 32/08-ST dated 18.11.2008. However, this amendment and CBEC clarification dated 12.3.2009 will be applicable only to the quarter April-June, 2008. In the case of the appellant, the period of six months expired much before the issue of Notification No. 32/08-ST dated 18.11.2008. Therefore, the refund claim is time barred. Applicability of period of one year - Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944 - Appellant relied upon Affinity Express India Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Commr. of C. Ex., Pune-I case law - Held that - the relied upon case law duly referred to the time period specified in Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944 and there was no reference to any period specified under Notification No. 5/06-CE during which the refund claim was required to be filed by exporter/assesse. The facts involved in the relied upon cases on the provisions of Notification No. 5/2006-C.E (N.T) are different to the provisions contained in Notification No. 41/07-ST, where refund claims were required to be filed within 60 days of a quarter. Accordingly, the relied upon case laws are not applicable to the facts of the present case. - Decided against the appellant

Summary

Issues:
1. Whether the refund claim filed by the appellant is time-barred under Notification No. 41/2007-ST.
2. Applicability of the period of one year as per Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944 to the present appeal.

Analysis:
1. Issue 1 - Time-barred refund claim under Notification No. 41/2007-ST:
The appellant filed a refund claim for the quarter January to March, 2008, beyond the 60-day period specified under Notification No. 41/07-ST. The appellant argued that the period was extended to six months by subsequent amendments, but the Tribunal held that these amendments did not apply to the appellant's case. The Tribunal noted that the period for filing the refund claim had expired before the amendments came into effect. The appellant's reliance on case laws related to the Central Excise Act was deemed irrelevant as they were specific to different notifications and timeframes. Therefore, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal as the refund claim was indeed time-barred under Notification No. 41/2007-ST.

2. Issue 2 - Applicability of one-year period under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act:
The appellant argued that the one-year period under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act should apply to their case. However, the Tribunal clarified that the case laws cited by the appellant were not relevant as they pertained to a different notification with distinct requirements. The Tribunal emphasized that the specific provisions of Notification No. 41/07-ST, which mandated filing within 60 days, governed the present case. As a result, the Tribunal found no reason to overturn the Order-in-Appeal passed by the first appellate authority. Consequently, the appellant's appeal was dismissed based on the above observations.