- (1.) TRIVENI Structural Limited is a public sector unit, being a joint enterprise of the Government of India and a party in Austria. It has filed this writ petition for quashing the orders of the Assistant Collector, Central Excise, Allahabad, dated September 1, 1984 and the Collector, Customs and Central Excise, New Delhi, dated July 11, 1986. For appreciating the controversy involved in this petition, a brief reference to the facts would be necessary. The petitioner company carries on the business of fabrication and erection of steel structures. In the course of its business, the company has to fabricate pipes and penstocks from steel and plates and sheets, which are excise duty payable items.
(2.) IN the year 1981 -82 the duty payable under Tariff Item No. 68, which is a residuary item with the heading 'All other goods not elsewhere specified' was 8% ad valorem. The petitioner submitted a classification list in advance for payment of excise duty under Rule 173B of the Central Excise Rules, 1944. The classification list submitted by the petitioner of the year 1981 -82 showed pipes and penstocks as chargeable with excise duty under Tariff Item No. 68. The classification list was approved by the Assistant Collector and the payment of excise duty of this year was made in accordance with the Tariff Item No. 68 at 8%. For the years 1982 -83 and 1983 -84 as well, the petitioner submitted classification lists indicating pipes and penstocks being covered by the residuary clause, that is, Tariff Item No. 68. On the pointing out of the Assistant Collector, the petitioners representative took back the classification lists for 1981 -82, 1982 -83 and 1983 -84, and files other classification lists showing that excise duty was payable under Item 25 (15), which was in substance the same as former Tariff Item No. 26AA (4). Tariff Item 25 (15) was as under : - '(15) Tubes and pipes and blanks One thousand rupees per therefore, of iron or steel, rolled, metric tonne plus the excise forged, spun, cast, drawn, annealed, duty for the time being leviable welded or extruded. on pig iron or steel ingots, as the case may be.'
(3.) THIS was substituted with effect from August 1, 1983, and, as stated before, the item under which the duty was payable previous to the aforesaid amendment, was 26AA (4). This was exactly in the same language as Item 25 (15).;