Centre moves apex court against Vicco’s products

The central excise department, which believes Vicco Laboratories’ products to be cosmetic and asked the company to pay Rs 9.09 crore as duty, has moved the Supreme Court against the Bombay High Court order that restrained it from recovering dues. The department had issued notices to Vicco demanding that it pay Rs 9.09 crore as excise duty for the period between April 2004 and December 2005 on the products — Vajradanti (toothpaste) and Vicco Turmeric (skin cream). It contended that these products were being marketed as cosmetics in trade parlance and thus cannot avail benefit of Modvat Credit. Also, the products were not manufactured exclusively in accordance with the formulae described in authoritative books specified in the First Schedule to the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, or Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia of India or the US, the UK or Germany, it argued. The matter will be heard on March 26.

Courtesy: EconomicTimes
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