GARWARE NYLONS LIMITED Vs. COLLECTOR OF CUSTOMS AND C EX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal directed against the order of the Collector of Customs (Appeals) bearing No. S/49-556/83-M, dated 26-4-84.

(2.) The brief facts of the case for the purpose of this appeal can be stated as below:

(3.) SHRI Kinikar, secretary of the appellants' company contended that they had filed the refund claim within the time limit before the Asstt. Collector (MCD), Bombay Custom House on account of their bona fide impression that since the shortage was noticed at Bombay, the claim should be processed and adjudicated by the Bombay Custom House. If the Asstt. Collector (MCD), Bombay had felt that he was not the competent officer to sanction the refund, he should have returned the refund claim with-direction to the appellants for presentation it before the appropriate authority well within the time. On the contrary after nearly five months the Asstt. Collector (MCD) Bombay asked for additional documents and after submission of the documents on 26-11-1983 he rejected the appellants' refund claim. They had, therefore, re-submitted the refund claim to the Asstt. Collector of Customs & Central Excise, Pune. The Asstt. Collector has not appreciated the fact that the claim was earlier presented well within the time before the Asstt. Collector (MCD), Bombay but reckoned the date of filing the refund claim only from the date on which he received it and rejected the claim on grounds of time bar. The Collector (Appeals) has not appreciated this fact. His observation that the appeal has not been filed against the order of the Asstt. Collector (MCD), Bombay, is also not tenable because in an another similar case, where the appellants had approached the Collector (Appeals), that authority had rejected their appeal on the ground that the duty was not paid in Bombay Custom House but at Pune.