2019 (11) TMI 791 - AT - Service Tax

Refund claim - Time Limitation - relevant date in respect of service tax paid on the transportation of Gas through pipeline by Gas Authority of India Ltd. - HELD THAT - From the impugned Order-in-Appeal it is noted that learned Commissioner (Appeals) has not accepted 29/04/2011 as the date of filing of application for refund whereas he has treated the date of filing of refund claim as 21/06/2011 for the reason that application on 29/04/2011 was filed before Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Allahabad whereas as per common understanding the refund application should be filed before jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner, Allahabad and the same was filed before jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner at Agra on 21/06/2011 and considering said date as date of filing dealt with the issue - We are not in agreement with the said argument of the learned Commissioner (Appeals). The refund is sought from the Department of Revenue and both Assistant Commissioner, Allahabad and Assistant Commissioner, Agra are representing Department of Revenue. Assistant Commissioner, Allahabad on receipt of said application on 29/04/2011 instead of rejecting the same should have forwarded the same to the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Agra. We, therefore hold that appellant had filed application for refund on 29/04/2011. Matter remanded to the learned Commissioner (Appeals) to decide the issue taking 29/04/2011 as the date of filing of refund application - appeal allowed by way of remand.

Summary

Issues:
1. Rejection of appellant's claim of refund as time-barred.
2. Discrepancy in the date of filing the refund application.
3. Interpretation of jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner for filing refund application.

Analysis:
1. The judgment deals with the rejection of the appellant's claim of refund amounting to ?47,64,882 as time-barred by the learned Commissioner (Appeals). The appellant initially submitted the refund claim on 29/04/2011 before the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Allahabad. Subsequently, due to a jurisdictional issue, the claim was returned and resubmitted on 21/06/2011. Despite following the directions and resubmitting the claim, the Assistant Commissioner, Agra rejected the refund application on 25/11/2013 as time-barred. The Commissioner (Appeals) upheld this decision through an Order-in-Appeal dated 30/07/2015, leading the appellant to appeal before the Tribunal.

2. The appellant argued that the relevant date for filing the refund application should be considered as 29/04/2011, as per previous Tribunal orders and a judgment by the Hon'ble Allahabad High Court. The Tribunal noted that the Commissioner (Appeals) had considered the date of filing as 21/06/2011 due to jurisdictional concerns, as the initial application was submitted to the Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise, Allahabad, instead of the jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner at Agra. The Tribunal disagreed with this interpretation and held that the refund application should be considered as filed on 29/04/2011, directing the Commissioner (Appeals) to reconsider the issue based on this date and in line with previous Tribunal orders and the High Court ruling.

3. The judgment emphasizes the importance of understanding the jurisdictional aspect of filing refund applications. It clarifies that both the Assistant Commissioners of Allahabad and Agra represent the Department of Revenue, and any application submitted to the wrong Assistant Commissioner should be forwarded to the correct jurisdiction. In this case, the Tribunal held that the appellant had correctly filed the refund application on 29/04/2011, despite the initial submission to the wrong Assistant Commissioner. The matter was remanded to the Commissioner (Appeals) for a fresh decision based on the correct filing date and in accordance with relevant legal precedents.