Section 142 - Amendment of notification issued under section 5A of the Central Excise Act - Finance Act, 2002

142. Amendment of notification issued under section 5A of the Central Excise Act.- (1) The notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) No. G.S.R. 509(E), dated the 8th July, 1999, issued under sub- section (7) of section 5A of the Central Excise Act by the Central Government shall stand amended and shall be deemed to have been amended in the manner as specified in the Third Schedule, on and from the 8th July, 1999 to the 28th February, 2002 (both dates inclusive) retrospectively, and, accordingly, notwithstanding anything contained in any judgment, decree or order of any court, tribunal or other authority, any action taken or anything done or purported to have been taken or done under the said notification, shall be deemed to be and always to have been, for all purposes, as validly or effectively taken or done as if the notification as amended by this sub-section had been in force at all material times. (2) For the purposes of sub-section (7), the Central Government shall have and shall be deemed to have the power to amend the notification referred to in the said subsection with retrospective effect as if the Central Government had the power to amend the said notification under sub-section (1) of section 5A of the Central Excise Act, retrospectively at all material times. (3) Notwithstanding the cessation of the amendment under sub-section (7) on the 1st March, 2002, no suit or other proceedings shall be maintained or continued in any court, tribunal or other authority for any action taken or anything done or omitted to be done, in respect of any goods under the said notification, and no enforcement shall be made by any court, tribunal or other authority of any decree or order relating to such action taken or anything done or omitted to be done as if the amendment made by sub-section (7) had been in force at all material times. (4) Notwithstanding the cessation of the amendment under sub-section (1) on the 1st March, 2002, recovery shall be made of all amounts of duty or interest or other charges which have not been collected or, as the case may be, which have been refunded but which would have been collected or, as the case may be, which would have not been refunded if the provisions of this section had been in force at all material times, within a period of thirty days from the date on which the Finance Bill, 2002 receives the assent of the President, and in the event of non-payment of duty or interest or other charges so recoverable, interest at the rate of fifteen per cent, per annum shall be payable, from the date immediately after the expiry of the said period of thirty days, till the date of payment. Explanation - For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that no act or omission on the part of any person shall be punishable as an offence which would not have been so punishable if the notification referred to in sub-section (7) had not been amended retrospectively by that sub-section.