1999 (12) TMI 207 - AT - Central Excise

Summary

Issues:
Appeal against disallowance of van allowance and lorry upkeep expenses as deductions from the assessable value of cleared biscuits under Section 4 of the Act.

Van Allowance Disallowance:
The appeal challenged the disallowance of van allowance on a monthly basis and lorry upkeep expenses. The order-in-original disallowed the van allowance due to it not being uniformly available to all buyers as per the appellants' circular. The tribunal found that the van allowance should fulfill the test of being declared as available to all buyers and given uniformly, which the appellants failed to prove. Thus, the denial of van allowance on a monthly basis was upheld.

Lorry Upkeep Expenses Disallowance:
Regarding lorry upkeep expenses, the tribunal noted several issues with the claim. The deductions were based on expenses after the financial year, not correlating with each consignment of excisable goods cleared. The law requires freight charges to be claimed per consignment, indicating a correlation between deductions and goods transported. Since the claimed deductions did not align with freight charges per consignment and were not reflected in invoices, the tribunal upheld the disallowance of lorry upkeep expenses.

Conclusion:
After thorough analysis, the tribunal dismissed the appeal, finding no merit in challenging the disallowance of van allowance on a monthly basis and lorry upkeep expenses. The appellants failed to meet the essential tests for van allowance as a trade discount and did not establish a correlation between lorry upkeep expenses claimed and consignments of excisable goods. Therefore, the lower authorities' decisions were upheld, leading to the dismissal of the appeal.