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TMI Blog2010 (8) TMI 343X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of Rs. 1,93,826/- and had imposed a penalty of Rs. 35,000/- against the assessee. 2. The assessees were engaged in manufacture of Acid Slurry classifiable under Chapter sub-heading No. 3402.90 and Spent Acid classifiable under chapter sub-heading No. 2807.00 of the schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985. They were availing the benefits of SSI exemption provided under Notification No. 9/99-C.E. dated 28th February 1999. In the course of the scrutiny of RT-12 returns submitted by the assessees for the period April 1999 to August 1999 and December 1999, it was noticed by the department that the assessees had cleared some part of the final products on payment of full rate of duty, while the remaining part of the final product were cl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... this case has opted to avail the benefit of this notification and had given it in writing in their declaration filed under Rule 173B with the Department. They have also paid the concessional rate of duty for their very first clearance at the said financial year. In the notification, nowhere it is mentioned that a manufacturer if pays full rate of duty on some consignments, would tantamount to withdrawal of option to avail of concessional rate of duty. 5. Perusal of show cause notices dated 20th October 1999 and 11th May 2000 discloses that the same were issued solely on the ground that after having opted to avail the benefit of exemption Notification No. 9/99-C.E., the assessees could not have paid duty over and above prescribed under ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that if due stress is given to the conditions, what the notification means is, that exemption is available to the entire quantity of admixture of the vegetable product, produced out of rice bran oil the only condition being that the content of rice bran oil should be more than 1% of the total, in any consignment, and such interpretation of the notification is equally possible. We are of the view that such a construction is not possible. Even assuming that it is so, in the case of an ambiguity or doubt regarding an exemption provision in a fiscal statute, the ambiguity or doubt will be resolved in favour of the revenue and not in favour of the assessee. The matter is concluded by a recent decision of a three-member Bench of this Court in M/s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... because the assessee has opted to avail the benefit of the said notification, nothing prohibits the assessee from making full payment of duty without claiming any benefit of such payment of such additional amount of duty for the financial year during which the assessee has opted for availing the benefit of the notification. In the case in hand, neither it was a case in the show cause notice nor thereafter it has been disclosed that the assessee had availed any benefit on account of payment of extra amount. Besides, even assuming he had availed such benefit, it has not been shown that such benefit would be in violation of the conditions of the said notification or any other law. 10. As regards the decision in Ganesh Metal Processors I ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , they became exempted goods. The goods became exempted goods only provided all conditions of the Notification are fulfilled. If any condition of the Notification is not fulfilled, goods are not exempted goods." 11. The law which has been laid down in the said decision is that the notification has to be read as a whole and if any of the conditions laid down in the notification is not fulfilled, the party would not be entitled to the benefit of that notification. We fail to understand how mere excess payment of duty could be said to amount to violation of the notification in question. 12. As far as in Himalayan Co-op. Milk Product Union Ltd. case is concerned, attention was drawn to para 8 of the decision, which reads thus : "8.&emsp ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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