Order Date – 27 September 2023

Parties: Commissioner of Customs – Jamnagar (Prev.) vs. Reliance Industries Limited

Facts –

• The Respondent, Reliance Industries Limited, challeged before Hon’ble Gujarat High Court on the levy of Export duty on iron and steel products according to the Notification No. 66/2008 dated 10.05.2008. SEZ Act, 2005.
• The Hon’ble High Court vide its order dated 04.11.2009 passed the order holding that levy of export duty on goods supplied from DTA to SEZ is not justified. The same was challenged by the Revenue before the Hon’ble Supreme Court whereunder the Hon’ble Apex Court vide its order dated 12.07.2010 dismissed the Special Leave Petition filed by them. Again they filed a review petition before the Hon’ble Apex court and the SLP has been re-stored to their original Numbers.
• Subsequent to dismissal of SLP, the respondent-assessee have filed refund claims and the Dy. Commissioner sanctioned the refund holding that the refund have been filed within proper time limit as prescribed in Section 27 of the Customs Act, 1962. The department challenged the above and the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) Ahmedabad and the Commissioner (Appeals) rejected the same.

Issue –

• Whether the refund can be sanctioned where the SLP is pending before Hon’ble Apex Court?

Order – 

• The Tribunal observed that from the perusal of the order that learned Commissioner (Appeals) has already considered all the submissions which have been made by the appellant-department in their appeals here. The Tribunal is of the opinion that only review petition being pending before the Hon’ble Apex Court cannot be the reason to set-aside the impugned order-in-appeal.
• Further, the jurisdictional High Court’s order has neither been set-aside nor stayed by the Hon’ble Apex Court and since the Hon’ble Gujarat High Court’s order as of today holds good.
• Thus, it was held that there is no illegality in the impugned order-in-appeal passed by the Commissioner (Appeals) and therefore, the appeals are without any merit and dismissed the same.