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TMI Blog2025 (1) TMI 1085X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and produces a certificate to that effect from an officer not below the rank of a Deputy Secretary to the Government of India in the concerned department to the manufacturer at the time of clearance of the specified goods. That is to say, if the institution is a public funded research institution under the administrative control of the Department of Space or Department of Atomic Energy or the Defence Research Development Organisation of the Government of India, all that the institutions specified in condition (i)(a) are required to do, is to produce a certificate simplicter from an officer not below the rank of a Deputy Secretary to the Government of India in the concerned department to the manufacturer at the time of clearance of the specified goods, stating that the institution is a public funded research institution under the administrative control of the Department of Space or Department of Atomic Energy or the Defence Research Development Organisation of the Government of India. The Department cannot therefore, without adducing any positive evidence from any subject matter professional or expert stating that the goods in question do not satisfy the description of goods covered ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... specified therein for exemption, issued a show cause notice (SCN in short) dated 04.06.2013 for the period 05/12 to 02/13, which SCN doesn't arise for consideration in these proceedings. As a sequel, 3 Statements of Demand (SOD in short), 09/2014 dated 02.05.2014,13/2014 dated 01.08.2014 and 22/2014 dated 05.10.2014 for the subsequent periods from 03/13 to 11/13 came to be issued and adjudicated after following due process vide OIO No.05/2015 dated 30.04.2015 whereby the demands were confirmed. Aggrieved by the impugned order in original, the Appellant preferred an appeal before the appellate authority, who vide Order in Appeal No.270/2015 dated 21.12.2015 (OIA in short) upheld the total demand of duty of Rs.6,92,523/- and appropriate interest thereupon while reducing the penalty imposed to Rs. Two lakhs. Aggrieved by this OIA, the appellant has preferred the Appeal No. E/40474/16 before this Tribunal. Thereafter, for the further period from 12/13 to 10/14 SOD dated 68/2014-CE dated 31.12.2014 was issued, which was adjudicated after due process by the adjudicating authority, Commissioner of Central Excise, Chennai-III, who, vide impugned Order in Original No. 23/2015 (CE) dated 30. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 1997 for the period from March 2013 to November 2013. He prays for dismissal of the appeal. Learned AR Shri. Anoop Singh while reiterating the rationale stated in the impugned order in Appeal, also pointed out that the excise duty exemption certificate No. ADE/MMD/EDE/P/13/69 dated 28-SEP- 2012 produced is not pertaining to the period covered under dispute in the subject Appeal. The Learned counsel in rejoinder, drew attention to the invoice No. CE-293 dated 08.08.2013 and particularly to the Purchase Order No. 110456/CPSS/13AT0168 /FSI/LP stated therein and submitted that the aforementioned excise exemption certificate clearly refers to the very same purchase order no and thereby evidences that the exemption certificate covers the goods cleared by the Appellant during the period in dispute. 6. We have heard both sides and perused the records. 7. We observe that Notification No. 10/97-CE dated 01.03.97 exempts goods of the following description : (a) Scientific and technical instruments, apparatus, equipment (including computers) (b) Accessories and spare parts of goods specified in (a) above and consumables (c) Computer software, Compact Disc-Read Only memory (CD ROM), rec ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the description of goods stated in (a) or (b) of column 3 of the table provided in the notification ibid. Moreover, competent officers of the respective institutions have certified that the goods are intended for research purposes only. On the face of such certification issued by competent officers clearly stating that they have been issued for the purposes of the said notification and that they are intended for research purposes, the Department has evidently erred in sitting in judgement over such certification without any proof or evidence to the contrary, namely, that the goods are not as described, and proposing to deny the benefit of such notification, merely on assumptions, without more. 9. Further, it is seen that the Central Board of Excise and Customs vide Letter D.O.F No.334/8/2016-TRU dated 29.02.2016 has clarified therein as under: " Notification No.10/97-C.E. dated 1.3.1997 grant exemption from excise duty to scientific and technical instruments, apparatus, equipment (including computers) and accessories, parts and consumables, supplied to specified institutions, subject to certification issued by the Head of the Research Institution that the said goods are essenti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... funded research institution under the administrative control of the Department of Space or Department of Atomic Energy or the Defence Research Development Organisation of the Government of India, all that the institutions specified in condition (i)(a) are required to do, is to produce a certificate simplicter from an officer not below the rank of a Deputy Secretary to the Government of India in the concerned department to the manufacturer at the time of clearance of the specified goods, stating that the institution is a public funded research institution under the administrative control of the Department of Space or Department of Atomic Energy or the Defence Research Development Organisation of the Government of India. It is evident that the Notification puts such public funded research institution under the administrative control of the Department of Space or Department of Atomic Energy or the Defence Research Development Organisation of the Government of India on an entirely different pedestal than the other institutions or Departments and laboratories specified in the notification. Pertinently, the requirement to certify that such goods are required for research purposes only, i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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