Order Date: 16  November 2022

Facts:

• The appellant, M/s.Ramesh Flowers Pvt. Ltd., 100% EOU, is engaged in exporting dry flowers and bouquets.
• The appellant filed refund claims for the unutilized accumulated cenvat credit under Rule 5 of Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004 read with Notification dated 18.06.2012.
• The refund claims were filed for the respective quarters for an amount of Rs.6,11,540/-, Rs.3,66,312/-, Rs.6,70,721/- and Rs.5,11,398/- being the cenvat credit of inputs and service tax paid by the appellant on input services for the quarters.
• The appellant by the authorities below vide letters dated 27.02.2015, 07.04.2015 and 20.07.2015 stating that documents furnished are insufficient and that claims required corrections.
• The appellants resubmitted the refund claims after making good the omissions and also furnished necessary documents. The first three refund claims were thus resubmitted on 10.07.2015, 10.07.2015 & 01.09.2015.
• The refund sanctioning authority rejected all the refund claims as time-barred stating that the refund claims have been filed beyond the period of one year as envisaged under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944.

Issue:

• Whether the limitation prescribed in Section 11B of Central Excise Act, 1944 is applicable when refund claim is filed under Rule 5 of CCR, 2004 read with Notification No.5/2006.

Order:

• The Tribunal observed that in the present case there is no dispute as to the limitation is applicable or not. The dispute is as to how to reckon the period of one year.
• The tribunal hold that the three refund claims which have been rejected as time-barred ignoring the date on which the claims were initially filed cannot sustain and requires to be set aside.
• The Principal Bench of the Tribunal in the case of CCE Indore Vs National Steel & Agro Industries Ltd, held that if the claim is initially filed within time, the resubmission of claim has to be considered in continuation of the earlier claim and cannot be held to be time-barred.
• The claim has been held to be time-barred computing the period of one year from the first month of the quarter.
• The appellant is eligible to get refund of unutilized credit of every month. The procedure to file refund claim for a quarter is only to make the filing and processing easier. The last month which is included in the quarter would have to be reckoned for computing the period of one year.
• The authorities the view that matter requires to be remanded to the original authority for processing the refund claims after giving an opportunity to the appellant to furnish the required document.