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Judgment
S.P. Bharucha and S.B. Majmudar, JJ.—We are concerned in this appeal against the order of the Customs, Excise and Gold Control Appellate Tribunal with antimony oxide. The majority view of the Tribunal was that it had been correctly classified by the Customs Authorities under Entry 30 of the Customs Tariff as a pigment. The dissenting member took the view that the antimony oxide imported by the appellants fell within Entry 28 because the relevant invoice 'shows that it is of commercial quality used in PVC conveyor belting manufacture'.
Entries 28 and 30 read thus :
Entry 28 :
Chemicals, drugs or medicines of all sorts not otherwise specified; and
Entry 30 :
Paints, colours and painter's material of all sorts not otherwise specified.
The appellants manufacture fire resistant belting. They use antimony oxide, which is fire retarding chemical in such manufacture. It appears that the Import Control Policy grades antimony oxide into two grades, namely, painter grade antimony oxide and antimony oxide of non-painter grade. The learned dissenting member has quoted Hawley's condensed dictionary which shows that antimony oxide can be supplied in two grades; technical and pigment. Reading the entries alongwith the Import Control Policy, as it must be, antimony oxide would be classifiable under the one or the other entry depending upon whether it is painter grade or non-painter grade. The invoice relating to the antimony oxide imported by the appellants shows it to be of the non-painter grade. It must, therefore, be classified under Entry 28.
The appeal is allowed. The order under challenge is set aside. The antimony oxide imported by the appellants shall be liable to duty under Entry 28. There shall be no order as to costs.