MUMBAI, July 25: Taking strong exception to the raids being conducted on interior decorators by the Excise department on charges of tax evasion, the Indian Institute of Interior Designers on Thursday called for more clarity in the interpretation of the excise laws.

The members of the institute claimed that till now any work done on site was exempted from tax. But the recent raids had been undertaken by the excise officials saying that since the work of an interior decorator also involved manufacture of various articles made from wood, a duty could be levied on such articles.

Twenty-two such contractors were raided by the excise officials on June 28. ``When we have not been asked to pay such taxes for many years, why are we called tax evaders now?'' asked Vijay Punjabi, a spokesman for the association.

The association claimed that wooden furniture not falling under `handicrafts' in chapter 94 of Central Excise Tariff not exceeding Rs 30 lakh in value are totally exempt from excise duty. Whether the parts of the furniture manufactured fall under this category or not needs to be looked into, they added.

According to the association, the Central Excise Act contemplates grant of excise licence to a manufacturer only for premises owned by him or under his control. But the Act does not contemplate grant of licence in respect of customer premises, over which the manufacturer has no control or in respect of different premises from time to time.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.