2018 (2) TMI 124 - AT - Central Excise

CENVAT credit - duty paying invoices - denial on the ground that the serial number on the invoices on which the credit was taken was hand written - Held that - Para 3.2 of the Central Excise Manual says that Hand written serial number shall not be accepted - however, said Central Excise Manual and the para 3.2 of Chapter 4 thereof are merely departmental instructions. In the absence of any statutory provision, the credit cannot be denied - appeal allowed.

Summary

Issues: Denial of Cenvat Credit based on hand-written serial numbers on invoices.

Analysis:
The appeal was filed against the denial of Cenvat Credit to the appellant, M/s.A.A. Trailers, based on hand-written serial numbers on invoices. The appellant's counsel argued that there is no legal requirement for the serial number to be pre-printed, and the impugned order did not cite any statutory provision supporting the denial of credit. The impugned order relied on para 3.2 of Chapter 4 of the CBEC Manual of supplementary instructions, which was deemed non-statutory. The Assistant Commissioner (AR) relied on the impugned order during the proceedings.

Upon reviewing the submissions, the judge noted that neither the original orders nor the impugned order referenced any statutory provision mandating pre-printing of serial numbers. The judge highlighted para 3.2 of the Central Excise Manual, which stated that while serial numbers could be printed at the time of printing or by using a franking machine, hand-written serial numbers were not acceptable. However, it was clarified that the Central Excise Manual and its relevant chapter were merely departmental instructions and did not hold the force of law. Consequently, the judge allowed the appeal, emphasizing that in the absence of a statutory provision, the denial of credit based on hand-written serial numbers was unjustified.