- (1.) BY this writ petition the petitioner-company has prayed for declaring Notification No. 68/63 CE dated 4.5.1963 as amended vide Notification No. 48/97-CE dated 2.9.1997 as ultra vires Section 12 of the Central Excise Act in so far as it applies the provisions of Section 142 (b) and 142 (c) (ii) of the Customs Act to the Central Excise Act. The petitioner has also prayed for lifting the attachment of the petitioner's property at B-12 and 13, Meerut Road, Ghaziabad and to quash the demand notice dated 8.10.2003.
(2.) BY an amendment application the petitioner has prayed for declaring the auction held on 8.11.2005, as null and void and to quash the certificate dated 9.1.2006, by which the auction sale was continued. The petitioner has also prayed for writ of mandamus directing the respondents to return the attached/auctioned goods or compensate the petitioner with the import cost of the goods in question. In this amendment application, the petitioner has also prayed for quashing the letter dated 12.1.2006 to recover Rs.1,75,277/- towards balance amount and interest. We have heard Shri Abhishek Anand assisted by Shri Nishant Mishra for the petitioner. Shri Ashish Shukla appears for the Central Excise Department. The petitioner is a Public Limited Company engaged in the manufacture of generic as well as patent and proprietary medicines (exisable goods) falling under Chapter-30 of the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985. The petitioner is also availing the benefit of MODVAT/CENVAT credit of duty paid on inputs used in the manufacture of excisable goods under Rule 57-AA to 57-AK of the Central Excise Rules, 1944.
(3.) BY a Notification No.36/2000-CE dated 4.5.2000, one of the excisable goods manufactured by the petitioners namely Intravenous Fluides (I.V. fluids) was exempted from payment of excise duty. On 3.5.2000 the petitioner had a closing balance of inputs for I.V. fluids in which inputs were used and on which the petitioner had availed MODVAT/CENVAT credit. A show cause notice was issued on 16.4.2001 proposing to recover CENVAT credit of Rs. 38,22,164/- involved on the inputs lying in stock as on 3.5.2000, and on inputs contained in I.V. fluids lying in stock as on 3.5.2000. The show cause notice gave the credit attributable to inputs lying in stock and inputs contained in finished goods separately. The petitioner deposited Rs.17,26,179/- involved on the inputs lying in stock as on 3.5.2000, under protest. An order-in-original was passed by the Deputy Collector of Excise on 29.5.2001 confirming the demand of Rs. 38,22,164/- under Section 11-A of the Act. The amount already deposited was adjusted against the demand. Besides a penalty of Rs. 3,00,000/- was imposed on the petitioner by the Deputy Commissioner, who also directed the petitioner to pay interest at the rate of 24% per annum.;