BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Government of India, Ministry of Commerce & Industry (Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion) issued an Office Memorandum on 7th January, 2003 in lieu of New Industrial Policy and other concessions for the State of Uttaranchal (Now State of Uttarakhand) and State of Himachal Pradesh to work out 'Tax and Central Excise concessions to attract investments in the industrial sector for the Special Category States, including Uttarakhand. The industries eligible for such incentives would have to be environment friendly with potential for local employment generation and use of local resources'. The core issue of the announcement related to Ministries/agencies on the issue inter alia, infrastructure development, financial concessions and to provide easy market access. The new initiatives were to provide the required incentives as well as an enabling environment for industrial development, improve availability of capital and increase market access to provide a fillip to the private investment in the state. Accordingly, it has been decided to provide the package of incentives for these States. In Clause 3.1(a), (b) it has been set out as under:--

(2.) It is asserted that in implementation of the Excise Duty, exemption promised by the said Industrial Policy and in exercise of power conferred under Section 5A of the Central Excise Act, 1944, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue through the Central Board of Excise & Customs (C.B.E. & C. for short) issued a notification (annexure No. 2) No. 50 of 2003 C.E., dated 10th June, 2003 (hereinafter referred to as 'the notification'), thereby granting full exemption from duty of excise levied on the goods specified in Schedule I and Schedule II of the Tariff Act in respect of specified excisable goods, subject to, amongst other, the fulfilment of condition that the excisable goods are cleared by new industrial undertaking set up located in the area of State of Uttarakhand, during the period of June 2003 upto 31st March, 2010.

(3.) District Udham Singh Nagar is set out in Annexure-3 of the table to the implementing notification. Pant Nagar Industrial Estate and Khasra Nos. 372 to 428, where the petitioner's factory is located are specifically set out as areas. It is asserted that the petitioner is eligible for 100% outright Excise Duty exemption under the Industrial Policy, as its factory falls within a specified location and the said location is specifically mentioned in Annexure-3 of the implementing notification, granting exemption from payment of the whole of duty of excise.