Kill joy Board dampens New Year spirit - plans physical control and bar on Cenvat credit
Welcome to the first edition of DDT in the New Year. The consultants must have had the most enjoyable New Year eve with the bonanza presented on a platter by the CBEC working over time on a holiday. See our Breaking News stories CBEC works overtime for a New Year gift to consultants - Denial of monthly payment of duty and physical control for alleged offenders.
The news was so important, that we could not hold it over the year end. The department is in a hurry. Adjudication and appeals are time consuming anti revenue measures and most often the Judiciary does not understand the wisdom of the great Revenue officers. Now if the Revenue has a suspicion that an assessee is committing an offence, they are going to
1. Disallow monthly payment of duty and insist on consignment wise payment of excise duty
2. Disallow use of Cenvat Credit, and
3. Impose physical control.
For the next three months, the entire department is going to be busy with this exercise. And the exercise is pretty cumbersome.
This is how it is supposed to work.
1. An officer gets a doubt that an assessee is an offender – normally these doubts will come during revenue drives against disobedient assessees.
2. The Commissioner is informed.
3. After satisfying that the assessee is indeed an offender, the Commissioner send a report to the Chief Commissioner
4. The Chief Commissioner sends a recommendation to the Board on what punishment is to be given to the offender-assessee.
5. Before that the Chief Commissioner should give a hearing to the assessee, but he is not required to pass any speaking order.
6. On getting the recommendation from the Chief Commissioner, an officer authorised by the Board will issue an order specifying the punishment.
7. This mysterious officer of the Board is not required to give any Show Cause Notice , nor a speaking order.
8. Board thinks his order is final.
Perhaps, Board has forgotten that we still have Courts in this country! Board wants a recommending officer to give a hearing, but he need not pass any order and the officer who will pass the order need not hear. Will this strange system pass even initial judicial scrutiny? As no adjudication or appellate mechanism is prescribed, assessees will have to run to the nearest High Court. Does the CBEC plan to clog our High Courts completely?
If somebody is an offender, don’t you have laws to punish him? Why can’t the Board understand that this type of actions will not generate Revenue but only litigation?