COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL EXCISE vs M/S. ULTRA MARINE

The Supreme Court addressed the applicability of Section 4 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 regarding the valuation of goods for excise duty. The court held that the charges collected by manufacturers for containers provided to customers must be included in the transaction value for duty assessment. The judgment clarified the relationship between Sections 3 and 4 of the Act, emphasizing that while they are interlinked, they operate in distinct fields, thus resolving the conflict between prior decisions in Union of India v. Bombay Tyre International Ltd. and Commissioner of Central Excise, Pondicherry v. Acer India Ltd.