Union Of India & Others vs Inter Continental (India)

The Supreme Court held that the Central Board of Excise and Customs cannot impose additional conditions on exemption notifications through circulars, as this would violate the statutory requirements under Section 25 and Section 159 of the Customs Act. The Court affirmed the High Court's decision that the impugned circular No.40/2001-Cus. was contrary to Notification No.17/2001-Cus. and thus invalid. The Court ruled that the assessee was entitled to the concessional rate of duty without the need for an End-use Certificate.