2017 (9) TMI 869 - AT - Central Excise

Refund claim - cess paid on final products - denial on the ground of time limitation and unjust enrichment - Held that - appellants have not crossed the hurdle of unjust enrichment as it is seen from records that they are unable to demonstrate that they have not passed on the education cess paid. The Chartered Accountants Certificate is also not very clear and does not specifically state that the amount has not been collected by appellant - refund rightly denied - appeal dismissed - decided against appellant.

Summary

Issues: Refund of cess paid on final products.

Analysis:
- The appeals were filed against the rejection of refund claims for cess paid on final products. The appellant, a manufacturer of biris, paid cess under the Beedi Workers Welfare Cess Act, 1976, and education cess on such cess. The refund claims were rejected on grounds of limitation and unjust enrichment by the adjudicating authority. The first appellate authority allowed the limitation issue but rejected the unjust enrichment contention. The main question in these appeals was whether the appellant demonstrated crossing the hurdle of unjust enrichment.

- The Tribunal observed that the appellant failed to prove they did not pass on the education cess paid. The Chartered Accountants Certificate did not clearly state that the amount was not collected by the appellant. The original authority rejected the refund claim based on unjust enrichment under Section 11B of the Act, 1944. The appellant argued that since the amount paid was a deposit, unjust enrichment did not apply. However, the Tribunal referred to legal precedents emphasizing that unjust enrichment could be invoked irrespective of the Act to prevent undeserved benefits. The burden to show the incidence of duty was not passed on to customers lay with the appellant, which they failed to prove adequately.

- The Tribunal highlighted that the appellant's accounts showed the cess paid as expenses, not receivables, indicating it was included in the prices charged to customers. The appellant's argument that prices were not dependent on the cess paid was not substantiated. The CA certificate provided did not conclusively prove that prices did not consider the cess amount. The Tribunal found that granting refunds would unjustly enrich the appellants as they did not prove the duty incidence was not passed on. The burden to demonstrate this shifted to the appellants due to the considerable time lapse between payment and refund claims. Consequently, the original authority's decision to reject the refund claims was upheld, and the appeals were dismissed for lack of merit.

- The Tribunal concluded that the reasoning provided in the order did not warrant interference, and the appeals were rejected for being devoid of merit. The operative part of the order was pronounced in court at the conclusion of the hearing.