Sanjib Banerjee, j. - (1.) The Revenue is up in appeal against a judgment and order dated July 27, 2015 by which an order-in-original of December 6, 2005 has been set aside on the ground that the extended period of limitation was not available to the Central Excise authorities to penalise the respondent assessee.
(2.) The principal issue raised by the Revenue is that the writ petition could not have been entertained when the assessee had failed to avail of the appellate remedy because there was no jurisdictional issue involved and it could not have been the assessee's case that the assessee was condemned unheard.
(3.) The matter pertains to classification and at the relevant point of time, the appellant had furnished a declaration and claimed that the goods answered to a particular description that attracted 15% excise duty. Long after the period of six months envisaged under Section 11A of the Central Excises And Salt Act, 1944 had expired, a show-cause notice dated February 9, 1994 was issued to the assessee and the assessee was called upon to explain why short-levy of duty amounting to Rs.47,58, 863/- should not be demanded and extracted from the assessee under Rule 9(2) of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 read with Section 11A of the said Act and penalty should not be imposed under Rule 173Q of the Rules of 1944.;