CESTAT Delhi Sets Aside ₹33.78 Crore Excise Demand On Sun Home Appliances Over Limitation

The Principal Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), New Delhi, has set aside a central excise duty demand of Rs. 33.78 crore against Sun Home Appliances Private Limited. It held that the extended period of limitation was wrongly invoked and that statements recorded during investigation could not be relied upon without following the mandatory procedure under Section 9D of the Central Excise Act, 1944 (which requires that statements be tested through...

CESTAT Ahmedabad Quashes Penalty On Gujarat Trader Over Urea Imports on High Sea Sales Basis Through MMTC

The Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) at Ahmedabad has set aside confiscation and penalties imposed on Deep Traders, Gujarat, holding that its import of technical-grade urea through a State Trading Enterprise on a high sea sales basis did not violate the Foreign Trade Policy. In a high-seas sales transaction, the State Trading Enterprise imports the goods and sells them to an Indian buyer while the shipment is still at sea, with the buyer completing customs clearance....

CESTAT Mumbai Rules Importer Entitled To DEPB Benefit Despite Subsequent Cancellation Of Scrips

The Mumbai bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal has held that Saguna Poultry Farm Ltd. cannot be denied duty exemption on imports made using DEPB scrips that were valid at the time of use, even if those scrips were cancelled later. DEPB (Duty Entitlement Pass Book) scrips are transferable licences issued to exporters that can be used to pay customs duty on imports. “The scrips were valid when they were utilized by the appellant. Subsequent cancellation would have no...

Bluetooth Earphones Are Earphones For Customs Classification, Not Data Transmission Devices: CESTAT New Delhi

The Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in New Delhi on Wednesday held that Bluetooth earphones remain earphones for customs classification and do not become data transmission devices merely because they use wireless connectivity. A bench of President Justice Dilip Gupta and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao held that the primary function of such devices is sound output, which makes them earphones.“Bluetooth Wireless Earphones are, objectively and physically,...

State VAT Exemption Cannot Override SAD Liability On Imports: CESTAT Chennai

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 24 April dismissed an appeal filed by Enterprise International Ltd., holding that exemption from VAT in Uttar Pradesh cannot be used to avoid payment of 4% Special Additional Duty (SAD) on imported silk fabrics. A Bench comprising Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao examined whether SAD liability can be avoided on the basis of a state-level VAT exemption and whether a demand...

Gold Chains In Running Lengths Are Jewellery, Not Semi-Manufactured Gold: CESTAT Bengaluru

The Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) at Bengaluru has recently held that gold chains imported in running lengths are to be treated as articles of jewellery and not as semi-manufactured gold, ruling that minor processes like cutting and attaching hooks do not alter their essential character. A coram of Technical Member Pullela Nageswara Rao said the goods had already taken the form of finished jewellery: “I find that the goods as imported, 'gold neck chains' though...

CESTAT Mumbai Dismisses Gamco Appeal In Customs Dispute, Says Imported Marble Slabs Were Actually Limestone

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Mumbai, has dismissed the appeal filed by Gamco International in a customs classification dispute involving alleged misdeclaration of imported marble slabs. It upheld confiscation, redemption fines, penalties, and denial of exemption after finding that the goods were actually limestone. The tribunal held that, in this case, there was clear misdeclaration of both the nature and quantity of the imported goods. It said the customs...

CESTAT New Delhi Allows Toyota Boshoku's Appeal, Holds Seat Components As 'Parts Of Seats'

The New Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 21 April held that goods specifically classifiable as parts of seats cannot be reclassified under a general entry for motor vehicle parts, and accordingly allowed the appeal filed by Shiroki Automobiles India Pvt. Ltd. (now known as Toyota Boshoku Device India Pvt. Ltd.). A Bench comprising President Justice Dilip Gupta and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao set aside the order of the Commissioner...

Delay Beyond 90 Days Not Condonable Under Customs Act: CESTAT Mumbai Reiterates

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 17 April, held that the Commissioner (Appeals) cannot condone delay in filing an appeal under Section 128(1) of the Customs Act beyond the original 60-day limitation period and the additional condonable 30-day period. A Bench comprising President Justice Dilip Gupta and Technical Member P. Anjani Kumar dismissed the appeals filed by Parekh Cranes and Machinery and its partner, and upheld the confiscation...

CESTAT Mumbai Allows Release Of Seized Drone Parts, Says Separate Consignments Not Complete Drones

The Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) at Mumbai has ordered the provisional release of seized drones and drone components, holding that Customs cannot deny release by treating separate consignments of parts as complete drones without establishing a one-to-one correlation and that the parts were capable of being reassembled into complete units. A coram of Judicial Member Dr. Suvendu Kumar Pati and Technical Member M.M. Parthiban held that the Department failed to show...

CESTAT New Delhi Sets Aside Duty Demand and Penalties On Ranbaxy In Ex-Works Valuation Dispute

On 24 April, the New Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) set aside the customs duty demand, invocation of the extended limitation period, and penalties imposed on Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. (now Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.) and customs broker Schenker India Pvt. Ltd. A Bench comprising President Justice Dilip Gupta and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao held that although the importer incorrectly declared ex-works price as FOB value in Bills of...

CESTAT Kolkata Sets Aside IGST Demand On Tea Pruning Machine Importer, Faults Dept. For Classification Lapse

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Kolkata, has set aside an IGST demand raised on an importer functioning under Tea Spares (India) over an alleged short payment of tax on imports of tea plucking and pruning machines.It held that the department could not apply a higher rate under a residual entry without first disputing the classification opted for by the taxpayer. The tribunal observed that “the adjudicating authority has appropriately questioned the...