9911796707
TMI Blog2013 (10) TMI 260X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Tariff. The period of dispute in this case is from October 1996 to June 2000. During this period, the assessments were provisional, which were subsequently finalised by the Assistant Commissioner. The appellant had claimed various discounts under the head namely "cash discount", "special discount", "additional discount", "quantity discount", "discount through credit notes", "insurance premium", "turnover tax", "loading/unloading charges", "packing and forwarding charges", "octroi" and "rebate and similar claims". When the assessment was finalised by Assistant Commissioner vide order-in-original dated 12-5-2003, he disallowed - "discount through credit notes" which was nothing but discount for goods damaged during transit, "insurance premiu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ), wherein it has been clearly held that the insurance till the buyers premise cannot be included in the assessable value whether ex factory or ex-depot, and that the deduction of "packing and forwarding charges" has been wrongly disallowed by the Commissioner (Appeals) a major quantity of the laminated sheets manufactured by the appellant is sold in loose condition without any packing and that packing in the cardboard boxes is done only in rare cases where the goods are sold to outstation buyers or exported. He, therefore, pleaded that the impugned order disallowing the deduction on account of "insurance premium" during transit of the goods and "packing and forwarding charges" is not correct and so far as the part of the impugned order all ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... l and, therefore, the deduction of transit insurance in respect of transit upto depot would not be admissible and that as regards the packing and forwarding charges, the same are essentially charges for packing and the same would be includable in the assessable value in terms of the judgment of the Apex Court in the case of Royal Enfield v. CCE, Chennai reported in 2011 (270) E.L.T. 637 (S.C.). He, therefore, pleaded that deduction of insurance premium and packing and forwarding charges has been correctly disallowed and that the Commissioner (Appeals)'s order permitting the deduction of damage discount and discount under the head "rebate and other claims" is incorrect. 5. We have carefully considered the submissions from both the sides and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the same stood during the period prior to 1-7-2000, it was permissible for a manufacturer to have different normal prices for different classes of buyers and that accordingly there could be different rates of a particular trade discount for different classes of buyers and that a special trade discount given to a bulk buyer is permissible. However, for classification of buyers for the purpose of different sale price to them, there must be some rational basis and it cannot be arbitrary. When the different prices are fixed by an assessee for different classes of buyers by the way of different trade discount, there must be some rational criteria for classification of the buyers and arbitrarily treating some buyers as special customers for high ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... packing of the goods sold from the depot. The appellant's contention is that the goods manufactured by them - laminated sheets are normally sold without packing and only in some cases where the sales are to the outstation customers, the goods are packed in cartons on the instruction of the customers. The department's contention on the other hand, is that the laminated sheets cannot be sold in the ordinary course of trade without packing and, therefore, the packing charges would be includable in the assessable value. The Apex Court in the case of U.O.I. v. Bombay Tyre International Ltd. (supra) on the question of inclusion of packing charges in the assessable value has held that the packing in which the goods are ordinarily sold in the cour ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... udgment in the case of U.O.I. v. Bombay Tyre International Ltd. (supra), U.O.I. v. Godfrey Philips India Ltd. (supra) and Royal Enfield v. CCE, Chennai (supra). 10. In view of our above findings, the Commissioner (Appeals)'s order allowing the deduction on account of damage discount (discount through credit notes) and special discount to special customers (rebate and other claims) is set aside and on these points the order passed by the original Adjudicating Authority is restored and as such, the Revenue's appeal is allowed. 11. As regards, the Commissioner (Appeals)'s findings on the other two issues - deduction of "insurance premium" and deduction of on account of "packing and forwarding charges", as observed above, the deduction or tra ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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