AMRIT PAPER LTD Vs. COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL EXCISE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE issue involved in this appeal filed by M/s. Amrit Paper Ltd. (A Division of M/s. Amrit Banaspati Co. Ltd.) is whether the exemption under Notification No. 48/91 -C.E., dated 25 -7 -1991 is available to the writing and printing paper, manufactured by the Appellants.

(2.) BRIEFLY stated the facts are the Appellants manufacture, inter alia, Writing and Printing Paper falling under sub -heading 4802.99 of the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act. They filed two classification lists during 14 -8 -1993 to 28 -7 -1994 classifying their product under sub -heading No. 4802.99 claiming nil rate of duty under Notification No. 48/91. The Collector, Central Excise, under the impugned order dated 15 -3 -1995, confirmed the demand of excise duty amounting to Rs. 52,68,282.70 paise and imposed a penalty of Rs. 10 lakhs, holding that they had removed 'newsprint' during the period 14 -8 -1993 to 28 -7 -1994 which was not declared by them; that they were declared as 'mills producing newsprint' by Department of Industrial Development vide order dated 3 -8 -1993; that it showed that every mill could not produce newsprint and similarly each and every kind of paper could not be used for printing of newspapers; that Notification No. 48/91 -C.E. did not exempt paper falling under Heading No. 48.01. The Collector also denied them the exemption under Notification No. 60/88 -C.E., dated 1 -3 -1988 as the Appellants had not claimed the same and moreover they had not produced the certificate from the Registrar of Newspaper of India within one month from the date of clearance to the effect that such quantity of newsprint was authorised by the said Registrar.

(3.) SHRI N. Khaitan, learned Advocate, submitted that Notification No. 48/91, exempts Writing and Printing paper, falling under heading 48.02 provided that the paper contains not less than 75% by weight of pulp made from jute, jute waste, mesta, rice straw, wheat straw or baggase or mixture thereof or mixture of two or more of the pulps of these materials; that the Appellants have been manufacturing Writing and Printing paper since 1980 and all material times the paper satisfied the requirement of Notification 48/91; that the Department had allowed the benefit of Notification to them immediately prior to 14 -8 -1993; that the Central Government vide order No. S.O. 590(E) under Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 read with Clause 2(e) of the Newsprint Control Order, 1962 notified, amongst other, the Appellant as a mill producing newspaper; that in persuance to this order, they supplied their product to various customers who used the same as newsprint; that there was no change whatsoever in the nature of the product which continued to be writing and printing paper; that as there was no change in the paper, they continued to classify the paper as Writing and Printing paper in the classification list; that the goods were described in the gate passes as 'Amrit News Print Reels' and these gate passes were filed with the Department alongwith RT 12 Returns. The learned Advocate further submitted that due to shortage of newsprint, the Central Government, under the provisions of a totally different statute, decided to treat their product as newsprint and the fact that their product was used as newsprint by various customers cannot affect classification under the law pertaining to excise; that even after 14 -8 -1993, the same product was sold by them to customers who used the same as writing and printing paper and not as newsprint; that in the case of such sales, the Department itself has treated the product as writing and printing paper; that end use of a product cannot determine the classification of the product; that there is no evidence that the impugned product is known or dealt within the market as newsprint; that the term writing and printing paper is wider in scope and covers in its scope newsprint which as per Note 3 to Chapter 48 means paper intended for the printing of newspapers; that the words 'intended for use' have been used in normal sense; that a perusal of Notification 43/86 and 167/86 make it amply clear that writing and printing paper include within its fold newsprint also.