ORDER
Shri S.L. Peeran (Oral)
1. This stay application and appeal are taken up together for disposal for the reasons that the issue is covered by the judgement of the Apex Court in the appellants’ own case, rendered in Civil appeal No. 7057-58/93 and connected Civil Appeal No. 5813/95. As the issue is covered, the stay application is allowed and the appeal is taken up for final hearing.
2. The appellants are manufacturers of pillion seats for scooters, driver and passengers seats for auto-rickshaws and seats for tractors and jeeps as latex form sponge which they claim to be falling under erstwhile tariff item 34A while the department intended to classify the same under erstwhile tariff heading 16-A(1) as rubber product. The matter was agitated before the Hon’ble Apex Court and the finally the Apex Court upheld the assessee’s contention treating the items as falling under item 34A as parts and accessories and not otherwise specified.
3. As the issue is now fully convened, the appellants’ representative seeks for allowing the appeal in terms of the Apex Court judgement.
4. Shri S. Kannan, learned DR on perusal of the Apex Court judgement submits that the judgement rendered by the Apex Court relates to the period up to 1.3.82. The present appeal also covers the same period and he reiterates the department view.
5. On consideration of the submission and on perusal of the records, we notice that in the present case, demands were raised for re-classification of the item under item 16A (1) of the erstwhile tariff in respect of the clearance effected during 6/81 to 2/82 and differential duty was demanded. The question for our consideration is whether reclassification of motor vehicle seats can be done under tariff item 16-A(1) of the erstwhile tariff Act. Now the Hon’ble Apex Court in the appellants’ own case cited above, has over ruled the Revenue’s contention that the item is classifiable under item 16-A(1) of the erstwhile Tariff Act, and upheld the assessee’s contention for classification as part of motor vehicle under erstwhile Tariff item 34-A. The Apex Court judgement fully applies to the facts in the present case. In this view of the matter, the impugned order is set aside and the appeal allowed with consequential relief if any.
(Dictated and pronounced in open Court)