2016 (8) TMI 934 - AT - Central Excise

SSI Notification No. 08/2002 dated 1/3/2002 - entitlement for benefit - manufacture of goods bearing the brand name Blue Heaven - Revenue aleged that he brand name with which goods have been cleared by the appellant does not belong to them but of another person - Held that - it is found that the brand name Blue Heaven is linked throughout with G.C. Laboratories and there is no doubt about it. There is no allegation whatsoever that the brand name belongs to some other person. The registration of the brand name was changed by the Registrar of Trademarks only to reflect the change in proprietor of M/s. G.C. Laboratories. Hence, the brand name Blue Heaven is in the name of Shri Gurnam Singh, Sole Proprietor of M/s. G.C. Laboratories as per the order of trademark registry dated 22/12/2006, which is on the basis of the request dated 23/07/2001. Under such circumstances, the brand name Blue Heaven is to be considered as continuously belonging to M/s. G.C. Laboratories. Therefore, the goods cleared by the appellant bearing the brand name Blue Heaven will be throughout entitled to the benefit of the SSI Notification. - Decided in favour of appellant

Summary

Issues:
Interpretation of small scale exemption benefit under Notification No. 08/2002 for goods manufactured under a specific brand name.

Analysis:
The appeal in this case was against the Commissioner's order denying the small scale exemption benefit to the appellant for goods manufactured under the brand name "Blue Heaven." The appellant claimed that the brand name belonged to M/s. G.C. Laboratories, specifically to Shri Gurnam Singh, the sole proprietor. The dispute covered the period from 2002-2003 to 2006-2007, with duty demanded amounting to ?78,39,921 for goods cleared under the said brand name. The Commissioner's decision was based on the view that the brand name belonged to Shri Gurnam Singh only from 22/12/2006, thus denying the exemption benefit under Notification No. 08/2002. The Commissioner referred to the Supreme Court decision in the case of Meghraj Biscuits Industries Ltd. (2007) to support this denial.

The appellant's counsel presented evidence showing the transfer of ownership of the brand name "Blue Heaven" over different periods. The trademark registration history revealed that initially, the brand name was registered in the name of Shri Charanjeet Singh Arora, then jointly with Shri Gurnam Singh, and eventually solely in the name of Shri Gurnam Singh. The Registrar of Trademarks issued an order on 22/12/2006 confirming the sole ownership of Shri Gurnam Singh over the brand name.

The Tribunal analyzed the Apex Court decision cited by the Commissioner and found it distinguishable from the present case. In the Apex Court case, the brand name was used without proper authorization, leading to a different outcome. In contrast, in the current case, the brand name "Blue Heaven" was consistently linked with M/s. G.C. Laboratories, with no dispute over ownership. The changes in the registration were merely reflective of the evolving proprietorship of the firm, not a transfer to an external entity. Therefore, the Tribunal concluded that the Apex Court decision was not applicable to the facts of this case.

Ultimately, the Tribunal held that the brand name "Blue Heaven" belonged to Shri Gurnam Singh, the sole proprietor of M/s. G.C. Laboratories, throughout the relevant period. Consequently, the goods cleared under this brand name were entitled to the small scale exemption benefit under Notification No. 08/2002. As a result, the appeal was allowed, and the Commissioner's order was set aside.