- (1.) THE first petitioner-company at all times material to the petition manufactured aerated waters and prepared or preserved foods at its factory in Bombay. The aerated waters manufactured by the Company were liable to excise duty under Item 1d of the 1st Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944. The Company sold its products to various customers who were its wholesale dealers. It did not effect any sales at the factory gate. The price charged by the Company to its wholesale dealers was inclusive of the costs of transportation for delivery of the goods from the company's factory to the wholesale dealers' premises. The price, therefore, included post manufacturing costs and expenses.
(2.) THE dispute in the present petition relates to the calculation of the value of the goods so manufactured by the petitioner-company for the purposes of levy of excise duty. The period which is covered by the petition is from 1st September 1976 to 29th February 1984.
(3.) THE old Section 4 of the Central Excises and Salt Act was replaced by a new Section 4 which was brought into operation from 1st October 1975. Prior thereto, the Bombay Excise collectorate issued a trade notice dated 18th August 1975 setting out therein, inter alia, the prescribed proforma for filing of price lists in view of the provisions of the new Section 4. The company accordingly filed its price lists. According to the Company, through mistake of law, it claimed an exclusion from the price of only the cost of transportation of the goods. Thereafter, the Company by its letter dated 26th August 1976 Addressed to the Assistant Collector, filed revised price lists where it claimed deduction from its price of post-manufacturing costs and expenses. Accordingly to the Company, its post-manufacturing expenses for the period 1-4-1974 to 31-1975 were Rs. 0. 91 paise per dozen bottles of aerated waters. The price lists which have been filed by the Company for the periods which are relevant to the present petition are also filed on the same basis and the Company has claimed a deduction of s. 0. 91 paise per dozen bottles from the price on the basis of these being post manufacturing expenses deductible from price for determination the value of the goods for the levy of excise duty. The respondents have, however, permitted the company a deduction of only Rs. 0. 36 per dozen bottles and disallowed the balance deduction of Rs. 0. 54 per dozen bottles.;