METTUR CHEMICAL AND INDUSTRIAL CORPORATION LIMITED Vs. ASSISTANT COLLECTOR OF CUSTOMS AND CENTRAL EXCISE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner manufactures a number of excisable products.. Out of such products, the following products are admittedly packed, in metal containers - Caustic soda 2.V.N.N. Oil (V) 3. Bleaching powder 4.Vanaspathi 5. Methylene Chloride 6. Chiereform 7. Carbon Terrachloride 8. Calcium Chloride. THE petitioner has not stated that the aforesaid eight products can be pushed into the market al the factory gate for sales without they being packed in metal containers. THE petitioner manufactures the metal containers also. Such metal containers by themselves are excisable goods and as such the petitioner paid excise duty on suph metal containers under Item 46 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act 1 of 1944 (hereinafter referred to as the Act)

(2.) THE 'eight finished products in the metal containers also underwent the levy of excise duty. THE petitioner wanted refund of the excise duty paid as above for the period from 1-3-1970 to 1-10-1974 on two basis firstly, that the value of the metal containers must be equated to packing charges, which are in the nature of post-manufacturing expenses, and therefore such value should be excluded from the assessable value, of the eight finished products referred to above under Section 4 of the Act. Secondly, that the metal containers as such having already suffered the excise duty cannot be made to suffer once again excise duty, when the eight products are packed in the metal containers and pushed into the market. This move of the petitioner has not found the countenance of the respondents. THE petitioner challenges the orders of the respondents in this regard.

(3.) MR. V. Narayanaswami, learned counsel for the petitioner, would refer to me a judgment of Koshal J. inE. I.D. Parry Ltd. and Shaw Wallace and Co. Ltd.v.Union of India, represented by the Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance(Dept. of Revenue and Insurance), Govt. of India, New Delhi, W.P. 1746 of 1972 etc. judgment dated 11-3-1977, 1978 E.L.T. (J 18), and would submit that packing in the form of containers must be held to be post-manufacturing expenses, not to be included in the excisable value. In that judgment, the question that came before the learned Judge was as to whether chemical fertilisers manufactured early to 1st March, 1969, which were not assessable to excise duty before 1st March, 1969, would become so assessable merely because they got packed into gunny bags etc. after 1st March, 1969. On the facts of that case, the learned Judge held that such process could not become part of the manufacturing process and the mere transfer of the end product into containers which can be handled conveniently would not form part of the manufacturing process and the fertilizer in question having already been manufactured prior to 1st March, 1969, could not be held to have undergone any further process of manufacture after 1st March, : 1969, so as to become assessable to excise duty.The judgment of Koshal J. has been referred to by Mohan J. in the judgment mentioned above and the learned Judge has also rightly held that the judgment of Koshal J. cannot be of any assistance to decide the question in issue.