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TMI Blog1979 (11) TMI 112X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hip firm carrying on the business of manufacture and sale of automobile parts, bolts, nuts and screws, at Madras. Among the various machines, installed at this factory, there is a Thread Rolling machine imported from Tsugami Corporation, Japan. The writ petitioner imported a consignment of thread roll dies and knurl dies for the working at the said machine, which dies are the component parts of, and essential for the working of, the machine. The dies so imported were assessed under item No. 71(a) of the First Schedule to the Indian Customs Tariff (Indian Customs and Central Excise Tariff, Volume I, by the Assistant Collector of Customs, Madras, at the rates which were prevailing during the relevant periods of importation, viz. in March 1972, March 1973 and March 1974. 3. According to the petitioner, the imported goods should have been classified and assessed under item 72(3), and not under item 71(a) as done by the Assistant Collector, since these goods are only the component parts of the thread rolling machine, and therefore, they filed refund applications on 21-7-1972, 25-6-1973 and 30-5-1974, before the Assistant Collector of Customs, Refund Section (Appraising), Madras-1. The ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... would like to reproduce below items 71(a) and 72(3) of the First Schedule to the Indian Customs Tariff. Item 71(a) reads: "71. Hardware, ironmongery and tools, and parts thereof, all sorts.not otherwise specified, including incandescent mantles, but excluding machine tools and agricultural implements- (a) tools and parts thereof". Item 72(3) reads : "72. (3) Component parts of machinery as defined in item Nos. 72, 72(1) and 72(2) and not otherwise specified, namely, such parts only as. are essential for the working of the machine as apparatus and have been given for that purpose some special shape or quality which would not be essential for their use for any other purpose, but excluding small tools like twist drills and reamers, dies and taps, gear cutters and hacksaw blades : Provided that articles which do not satisfy this condition shall also be deemed to be component parts of the machine to which they belong if they are essential to its operation and are imported with it in such quantities as.may appear to the Collector of Customs to be reasonable". I think that a description of the imported die would be relevant for rendering a decision on the question whether the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h an indispensable and integral part of the machinery, he would straightaway answer it in the affirmative, but yet, he would argue that item 73(3) specifically excludes these dies, bringing them within the category of 'small tools' as adumbrated in the exclusion clause of item 72(3) and that the petitioner has not proved that these dies are not outside the exclusion clause of item 72(3), and therefore, these consignments had become exigible to import duty under item 71(a). 6. At this juncture, I would like to point out that even the Appellate Collector of Customs, while meeting the arguments of the writ petitioner that the dies are only the component parts of the Tsugami thread rolling machines, has recorded the following finding - "May be, as contended, the tread roll dies, imported in sets of 4 are capable of being used only on Dyana Rol Form and Thread Rolling machine T. Rol 15. It is however seen from the invoice produced at the time of personal hearing, different sets of dies are required for working, the machines depending upon the thread specifications, diameter and length of the work material involved and the dies under reference are therefore no different then small t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... el and hence it was liable to be assessed under item 48(c). Rejecting the objection raised by the respondent as irrelevant, the learned Judge accepted the case of the petitioner, holding that there was no question of any classification, but that the goods fall under the earlier part of item 72(3), being a component part of the machinery. The facts of the decision in Siemens Engineering and Manufacturing Co.'s case, A.I.R. 1976 S.C. 1785, on which much reliance was placed by the Counsel, are as follows - One Kesoram Industries and Cotton Mills Ltd., under the strength of a licence issued in its favour, imported Rayon Spinning frames excluding pot motors, from Japan. But, so far as pot motors were concerned, they authorised the appellant therein to import from Germany 4000 of those motors for initial installation of the Spinning frames. Pursuant to the authority so given, the appellant placed orders for 4000 pot motors with manufacturers in Germany and imported the same in seven different consignments under the Import Licence of Kesoram Industries and Cotton Mills Ltd. These consignments arrived at Calcutta port between September and December 1961. The appellants claimed before the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e word 'die' in its ordinary trade parlance is entirely different from 'thread roiling die' which is a product specifically designed to suit particular machines and made out of special metal of high quality under particular specifications. 10. Now, coming to the submission of Mr. U.N.R. Rao, it may be stated that the exclusion clause of item 72(3) excludes 'small tools': By way of illustration for the term 'small tools', twist drills, reamers, dies, taps, gear cutters and hacksaw blades are mentioned in the said clause. Now, the question is whether the imported die in question which has been 'admittedly specially designed and made to particular specifications and imported as a component part of the Tsugami thread rolling machine and essential for its working" can be brought within the category of 'die' occurring in the list of products given by way of illustration for the term 'small tools' in the exclusion clause. 11. The laxigraphical meaning of the word 'tool' given in the Shorter Oxford Dictionary reads thus - "Tool-Any instrument of manual operation, a mechanical implement for working upon something, as by cutting, striking, rubbing or other process in any manual art or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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