- (1.) THE main question involved in this reference is, If two exemptions are available to the same class of goods then whether an assessee has an option of choosing anyone of them.
(2.) M/s. Modi Xerox Limited (the Assessee), apart from others, manufactures toners. The toners is in the form of black powder packed in bottles. The bottles and its caps are also manufactured by the Assessee. The Assessee had filed a declaration under Rule 57G specifying the toner as final product; HDPE, polypropylene, granules and ink were mentioned as inputs for the manufacture of toner. The Assessee had been paying excise duty on the bottles and caps in terms of notification 53/88-CE dated 1.3.88; then subsequently in terms of Notification 14/92 dated 01.3.92 (the 1992 Notification).
(3.) THE Assessee had been taking modvat credit of the duty paid on the bottles and caps, while paying the duty on the final product toner in which the value of packing material was also included. Subsequently, the Assessee filed a classification list declaring plastic bottles and caps as excisable goods manufactured in the factory effective from March 1993. As indicated in the preceding paragraphs, the plastic bottles and caps are being captively used by the Assessee for packing toners and developers.;