New Excise cell set up commissionerat

Soni said that the purpose behind the scheme is to lighten the burden of appelatte tribunals and also to release substantial amount of money blocked due to litigation.

According to preliminary departmental estimates, the amount involved is about Rs 120 crore in about 670 cases. These figures pertain to the jurisdiction of Commissionerate-II, which covers the state of Punjab (excluding districts of Ludhiana, Patiala, Ropar and Fatehgarh) and the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Under the scheme, which begins on September 1 and continues up to December 31, assessees whose cases are pending before the appelatte tribunals can make a declaration before the designated excise authority (likely to be the commissioner, central excise) about their tax arrears.

However, as per the rules, only those assessees who have been served show cause notices on or before March 31, 1998 are eligible. Further, any assessee who is facing prosecution in a court of law, or has been charged under IPC, FERA, NDPS, TADA, Prevention of Corruption Act etc. is outside the purview of the scheme.

Also those assessees who have not been served any show cause notices or those who do not have any appeal pending before any authority or court are not eligible.

The designated authority shall decide the amount payable by the assessee within 60 days from the date of receipt of the application and the declarant will have to pay the sum within 30 days of the decision and obtain a certificate from the designated authority. The amount once paid will not be refundable.