Wrong entry during e-payment puts Rs15L in another’s credit

MADURAI: The next time when you are making an e-payment, check twice for the payment code as there is a possibility it may go wrong. This is what happened to one M/s Sundaram Industries Limited, a manufacturer of rubber products functioning on Usilampatti Road, Kochadai, Madurai which had to undergo the hassles of running behind court over a wrong entry.
The company is an assesse under the department of Central Excise, Madurai division. On November 6, last year while making payment of Rs 15 lakh towards excise duty through e-payment, the company wrongly mentioned its assessee code as AABCS5320JXM001 instead of AABCS5320HXM001, wherein one letter viz., “J” had been wrongly mentioned instead of “H”.
It resulted in the wrong entry of credit from the account of a different assessee (M/s Suri Impex, Gurgoan). Immediately after coming to know about it, the company effected another payment the next day to an extent of the same amount along with interest. Thereafter, the petitioner company sought refund of the payment made on November 6.
As it was not done so, the company authorised by its signatory filed a case before the high court bench seeking direction to the central excise to refund the amount.
During hearing, the central excise told the court that during the course of process of the petitioner’s refund application, a letter was addressed to the assistant commissioner (AC) of Central Excise, Gurgoan, on January 1, last to confirm the payments said to have been made by the petitioner under the wrong code belonging to M/s Suri Impex.
The assistant commissioner certified that M/s Suri Impex had applied for surrender of registration and there are no dues pending against it at present. In the meantime, M/s Suri Impex also said that it had no objection in refunding Rs 15 lakh to the petitioners.
The petitioner also submitted a letter of State Bank of India certifying that the payment has wrongly been made. The petitioner also furnished an indemnity bond undertaking to indemnify the loss on account of the department sanctioning refund of Rs 15 lakh to them.
Following it, justice S Vaidyanathan passed order disposing the petition. “Admittedly, while making e-payment, the petitioner company has wrongly mentioned its assessee code. Apart from that, the petitioner has made the payment twice. In view of the above said position, the petitioner is entitled to get refund of the payment wrongly made on November 6. Therefore, the respondent (central excise) is directed to refund the said amount to the petitioner’s company,” the judge said.