VIDARBHA VENEER INDUSTRIES LTD Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is a public limited company within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1956 and at all material times carried on the business of manufacturing and marketing plywood and allied products. The petitioner has its factory at M. I. D. C. Estate, Hingna, Nagpur, where the flush doors and other products are manufactured.

(2.) THE subject matter of this petition is the validity of the levy of excise duty on flush doors under Tariff Item 16b of the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 (hereinafter referred to as "the act" for the sake of brevity) and consequent refund of the amount of excise duty collected without the authority of law.

(3.) ACCORDING to the petitioner, flush door is neither a combination nor a finished article of plywood or board falling under Item 16b of the Central Excise Tariff and, therefore, they were not liable to pay excise duty at the rate specified in that item. The correctness of the levy of excise duty on flush doors was challenged in Writ Petition No. 938 of 1977, (M/s. Wood Craft products Ltd. v. The Superintendent, Customs and Central Excise, Dibrugarh and Others) before the Delhi High Court. By judgment dated 17-3-1980 reported in 1980 (6) ELT 684 it was held that the product flush doors cannot be classified under Item 16b of the Central Excise Tariff, but it can be classified under item 68 as "goods not elsewhere specified. "