Customs Must Establish Foreign Origin Before Presuming Goods Were Smuggled: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court at Lucknow has recently held that the burden of proof under Section 123 of the Customs Act, 1962, does not shift to the person from whom goods are seized unless the customs authorities first establish that the goods are of foreign origin and were smuggled into India. it held that where nothing on the record connects the goods to smuggling, the presumption cannot be pressed into service at all. The Court applied the rule to silver bullion and to Indian...

CESTAT Chennai Allows JSW Steel ₹1.62 Crore Refund After Excess Export Duty Remained Unassessed Until 2015

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) at Chennai has allowed JSW Steel Ltd.'s claim for a ₹1.62 crore refund of excess export duty. It held that the limitation period could not be counted from the date of the original payment when the excess amount was identified only upon reassessment in 2015.The bench comprising Judicial Member Ajayan T.V. and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao observed that the additional amount paid by JSW Steel was never...

Madras High Court Directs Provisional Release Of Imported Equipment, Rejects Reliance On Later Amendment

The Madras High Court has directed Customs authorities to consider the provisional release of consignments of second-hand highly specialised equipment.Justice Hemant Chandangoudar held that a later amendment to the applicable exemption notification could not be relied upon to deny release of goods covered by Bills of Lading issued before the amendment came into force.The petitioner had imported second-hand highly specialised equipment, namely digital multifunction print and copying...

CESTAT Hyderabad Upholds Customs Duty Exemption For Reliance's Plant Used In Petroleum Operations

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Hyderabad has upheld customs duty exemption for Reliance Industries Ltd. on its import of a Mono Ethylene Glycol Reclamation Plant used in petroleum operations. It ruled that the benefit could not be denied merely because the plant was classified under a different tariff heading from Heading 8430, which was mentioned alongside the relevant entry in the exemption list.The tribunal observed that a plain reading of the exemption notification...

Delhi High Court Refuses Writ Against Gold Confiscation, Cites Disputed Facts And Revision Remedy

The Delhi High Court has refused to entertain a writ petition challenging the absolute confiscation by Customs authorities, holding that disputes concerning the alleged oral show-cause notice and waiver of personal hearing involve disputed questions of fact which should be examined by the statutory revisional authority.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Shail Jain observed that although the existence of an alternative remedy does not completely bar the High Court's jurisdiction...

Delhi High Court Refuses Release Of Customs-Detained Gold Over Disputed Coercion Claim

The Delhi High Court has held that a disputed claim that a passenger was coerced into signing documents admitting non-declaration of goods cannot, by itself, justify their release in writ jurisdiction. The court cannot accept such a version over contemporaneous documents bearing the passenger's signatures when it raises disputed questions of fact.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Shail Jain made the observation while dismissing a petition seeking release of two gold bars, which...

CESTAT Mumbai Sets Aside ₹1.80 Crore SAD Demand Against Emerson Process Management

On 2 September, the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Mumbai set aside a Special Additional Duty of Customs (SAD) demand of Rs.1,79,95,057 against Emerson Process Management (India) Private Limited for the period from April 2012 to July 2013. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Ajay Sharma and Technical Member M.M. Parthiban held that the extended period of limitation could not be invoked in the absence of suppression of facts or mala fide intention, as the company's...

Customs Cannot Indefinitely Detain Goods Through Panchnama To Reset Limitation: Gujarat High Court

The Gujarat High Court on 25 August held that Customs authorities cannot use a Panchnama to indefinitely restrain goods and later issue a formal seizure order to bypass the time limits under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, ruling that the limitation period starts from the date of detention if the mandatory order under the provision was not passed. A Division Bench comprising Justices A.S. Supehia and Vaibhavi D. Nanavati held that the vehicle belonging to petitioner Pranavbhai Ambalal...

Delhi High Court Declines Writ Challenge To Gold Confiscation Over Oral Show Cause Notice Acknowledgment

The Delhi High Court has observed that a passenger's waiver of a written show cause notice under the Customs Act cannot be considered in isolation to defeat confiscation, where the record also contains the passenger's own acknowledgment that an oral show cause notice had been received.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Shail Jain made the observation while dismissing a writ petition challenging an order directing absolute confiscation of two gold bars weighing 233 grams and valued...

Customs Act | Delhi High Court Refuses To Entertain Challenge To Absolute Confiscation, Cites Alternative Remedy

The Delhi High Court has refused to entertain a writ petition challenging the absolute confiscation of a 117-gram gold bar, holding that the Petitioner has an efficacious statutory remedy of filing a revision application before the Central Government under Section 129DD of the Customs Act, 1962.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Shail Jain dismissed the petition of an Indian national who was intercepted at the Delhi airport after he crossed the Green Channel.A statement was...

No Automatic Release Of Seized Goods Where Customs Claims Oral Show Cause Notice: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that unconditional release of seized goods under Section 110(2) of the Customs Act, 1962, cannot be ordered merely because no written show cause notice was issued when the Customs Department specifically asserts that an oral show cause notice under Section 124(a) was issued.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Shail Jain was dealing with a petition seeking release of a 100-gram gold bar seized from the petitioner at Delhi airport.Petitioner argued that...

Delhi High Court Quashes Customs Demand Against JAL After Unfiled Insolvency Claim Stood Extinguished

The Delhi High Court has held that a pre-insolvency customs claim against Jaiprakash Associates Limited stood extinguished after the Customs Department failed to submit it during the company's insolvency process and the resolution plan was approved.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain observed, “The failure of the Respondents (Customs) to submit their claim cannot…operate to the prejudice of the Corporate Debtor or the Successful Resolution Applicant. The IBC does not...