The Principal Commissioner CGST And Central Excise vs. M/S Nalwa Steel And Power LTD.
Facts
The Principal Commissioner CGST and Central Excise, Raipur (appellant) filed Tax Case No. 134 of 2018 against M/s Nalwa Steel and Power Ltd. (respondent). The appeal was against Final Order No. A/50697/2018-EX (DB) dated 02/02/2018 of the Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT). The appellant filed an application (I.A. No. 01 of 2019) seeking withdrawal of the appeal. The application cited instructions issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Excise & Customs (now Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs) dated 11/07/2018 and 22/08/2019, which fixed monetary limits for filing appeals to reduce litigation. The revised monetary limit for High Courts was Rs. 1,00,00,000/-. The amount of duty involved in the present case was Rs. 77,61,228/-, which was below this limit and did not fall under the exceptions for constitutional validity challenges or where notifications/instructions were held illegal.
Held
The Court allowed the withdrawal of the appeal. The reasoning was based on the application filed by the appellant seeking withdrawal in pursuance of the instructions issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs. These instructions, dated 11/07/2018 and 22/08/2019, set monetary limits for filing appeals to reduce government litigation. The revised monetary limit for filing appeals in High Courts was Rs. 1,00,00,000/-. The amount of duty involved in the present case was Rs. 77,61,228/-, which was below this limit. The Court noted that the issue involved did not fall under the two exceptional categories mentioned in the instructions (constitutional validity challenge or notification/instruction held illegal). Consequently, the Court disposed of the Tax Case No. 134 of 2018 as withdrawn. The operative direction was to dispose of the appeal on withdrawal.
Key Issues
1. Whether the appeal filed by the appellant is maintainable before the High Court given the revised monetary limits for filing appeals stipulated by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs? The appellant argued that the appeal was filed against a CESTAT order. However, subsequent instructions issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs, particularly the one dated 22/08/2019, revised the monetary limits for filing appeals in High Courts to Rs. 1,00,00,000/-. The amount of duty involved in the present case was Rs. 77,61,228/-, which is below the prescribed limit. Furthermore, the issue involved did not fall under the exceptions mentioned in the instructions, which include challenges to constitutional validity or where notifications/instructions are held illegal. Therefore, the appellant sought to withdraw the appeal based on these instructions. The respondent did not record any arguments in the judgment.
Sections Cited
Section 35R, Section 83, Section 131BA
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
1 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR TAXC No. 134 of 2018 The Principal Commissioner CGST and Central Excise CGST and Central Excise, GST Bhavan, Dhamtari Road, Tikrapara, Raipur, Chhattisgarh. ---- Appellant Versus M/s Nalwa Steel and Power Ltd. At-Taraimal, P.O.-Gerwani, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. ---- Respondent (Cause-title taken from Case Information System) _______________________________________________________________ For Appellant : Mr. Maneesh Sharma, Advocate For Respondent : Ms. Romir S. Goyal, Advocate ________________________________________________________________ Hon'ble Shri Arup Kumar Goswami, Chief Justice Hon'ble Shri Sanjay Agrawal, Judge Order on Board Per Arup Kumar Goswami, Chief Justice 14.12.2021 Heard Mr. Maneesh Sharma, learned counsel for the appellant and Ms. Romir S. Goyal, learned counsel appearing for the respondent.
I.A. No. 01 of 2019 is an application for withdrawal of Tax Case No. 134 of 2018. 3. The appeal was filed against Final Order No. A/50697/2018-EX (DB) dated 02/02/2018 of Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT).
At paragraphs 2, 3, 4 and 5 of I.A. No. 01 of 2019, it is stated as follows :
The judgment continues below.
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