M/S. Puma Ayurvedic Herbal (P) Ltd vs Commissioner, Central Excise, Nagpur

The Supreme Court addressed the classification of Ayurvedic products under the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985, determining whether they should be categorized as medicaments under Chapter 30 or cosmetics under Chapter 33. The Court established a twin test for classification: (1) the common parlance test, assessing whether the product is understood as a medicament, and (2) whether the ingredients are recognized in authoritative Ayurvedic texts. The Court held that the products in question were indeed medicaments, thus attracting nil excise duty, and overturned the prior classification as cosmetics.