COLLECTOR OF CENTRAL EXCISE Vs. DLF CEMENT LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Revenue has filed the above application under Section 35F(1) of the Central Excise Act, 1944 for reference of the following question of law purported to have arisen out of Tribunal's Final Order No. A/510/99 -NB, dated 24 -6 -1999 holding that transformers used in ESP Section of the assessee's factory are capital goods eligible to Modvat credit under Rule 57Q of the Central Excise Rules: -

(2.) WE have heard Shri M.M. Dubey, learned DR and Shri M.P. Dev Nath, learned Advocate.

(3.) WE find that a similar issue has already been referred to the Hon'ble Bombay High Court in the case of Collector of Central Excise, Pune v. Three M Paper Manufacturing Co. Pvt. Ltd. reported in 2000 (37) RLT 820. We also note that Supreme Court has admitted the Special Leave Petition against the Tribunal's Larger Bench decision in the case of Jawahar Mills v. Collector of Central Excise reported in 1999 (32) RLT 379 in which electrical distribution equipment was held to be eligible to capital goods credit. Since a question of law arises for reference, we allow the application and refer the following question of law for consideration by the Hon'ble Rajasthan High Court at Jodhpur, in spite of the respondents citing before us Reference Order No. R/32/99 -NB, dated 4 -11 -1999 (Collector of Central Excise, Indore v. Lupin Laboratories Ltd.) rejecting the Revenue's reference application on the question as to whether electric cables and control box etc., can be considered to be capital goods under Rule 57Q: