1995 (3) TMI 97 - SC - Central Excise

Summary

Issues involved: Classification of "Amrutanjan Pain Balm Ayurvedic" under Tariff Heading 3003.30 of the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985 and whether it qualifies as an ayurvedic medicament attracting nil rate of duty.

Summary:
The Supreme Court, in this appeal, addressed the classification of the appellant's product, "Amrutanjan Pain Balm Ayurvedic," under Tariff Heading 3003.30. The appellant contended that the balm should be classified as an ayurvedic medicament and attract a nil rate of duty. However, the Customs, Excise & Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal and lower authorities disagreed, stating that the balm's main ingredients were synthetic in nature, not aligning with traditional ayurvedic principles. The Tribunal accused the appellant of attempting to evade excise duty by altering ingredient names on invoices and labels to ayurvedic terms. The Supreme Court noted that the same ingredients could be used in both ayurvedic and western sciences, and the presence of "IP" denoted pharmaceutical quality. The Court concluded that the ingredients were known in both sciences and refined for medicinal use, thus classifying the balm as an ayurvedic medicine. Consequently, the appeals were allowed, the previous judgment was set aside, and the balm was recognized as an ayurvedic medicine for classification purposes.