The Chandigarh bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that the import of steel balls is classifiable under the category of ball or roller bearings.
Sumit Arora, the appellant assessee engaged in the import of “Steel Balls” and the assessee appealed against the order passed by the adjudicating authority for the re-classification and the recovery of differential duty.
Naveen Bindal and Aman Garg, the counsels for the assessee contended that the classification made by the assessee was as per the law and the revenue classified the goods under the general heading which covers parts and accessories of motor vehicles; because of Clause (a) of Rule 3 of General Rules for Interpretation, the specific entry should be preferred over a general entry.
Nikhil Kumar Singh, the counsel for the department relied on the decisions made by the lower authorities and contended that the assessee was not liable for the differential duty demand.
The Bench observed that the classification made by the assessee under the category of ball or roller bearings and the classification made by the revenue was not as per the law and liable to be deleted.
The two-member bench comprising S S Garg (Judicial) and Anjani Kumar (Technical) held that the impugned order was not legally sustainable and hence liable to be set aside. When the classification and duty demanded in the show-cause notice are set aside, there is no way that the penalty on the assessee’s company and its directors can survive.
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