Bombay High Court Directs Release Of Imported Areca Nuts Without Guarantee, Says FSSAI Clearance Suffices

The Bombay High Court on 31 August directed the Customs Department to release two consignments of imported roasted areca nuts belonging to Shivshakti Enterprises without insisting on a Rs. 40 lakh bank guarantee. A Division Bench of Justices M.S. Karnik and Sandesh D. Patil applied the principle laid down in the High Court's earlier decision in NBG International Private Limited v. Union of India & Ors. and held that the issue in the present case was squarely covered by that ruling. The...

Madras High Court Quashes ₹4.56 Crore Customs Duty Demand Against Shipping Forwarder

The Madras High Court on 19 August set aside a Rs. 4.56 crore differential customs duty demand, along with interest and penalties, imposed on the proprietor of The Sea Shipping Forwarders. A Single-Judge Bench comprising Justice Hemant Chandangoudar held that the Customs Department failed to record a specific finding, supported by cogent evidence, that the petitioner had prior knowledge of the concealed goods or knowingly facilitated their concealment and attempted duty evasion. He held: ...

Punjab And Haryana High Court Orders Release Of Roasted Areca Nuts Detained Since November 2024

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 17 August directed the release of imported roasted areca nut consignments that had remained detained in Customs bonded warehouses since November 2024. A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor found that the Central Revenue Control Laboratory (CRCL), New Delhi had classified the goods as “dried” rather than “roasted” based only on their physical appearance and colour, without applying the scientific...

Rajasthan High Court Says Customs Cannot Recover Excess Drawback Without Reassessment

The Rajasthan High Court on 12 August held that Customs authorities cannot directly invoke Section 75A(2) of the Customs Act, 1962 to recover alleged excess drawback without first reassessing the exporter's self-assessment under Section 17 of the Act. A Division Bench comprising Justices Munnuri Laxman and Sangeeta Sharma allowed writ petitions filed by Bhati & Company and Latiyal Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd. and granted the Customs authorities liberty to proceed under Sections 17 and 18 of the...

Six-Month Limit Does Not Apply To Currency Seized As Evidence Under Customs Act: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court on 10 August held that the six-month time limit under Section 110(2) of the Customs Act, 1962 for issuing a show-cause notice does not apply to Indian currency treated as a “thing” under Section 110(3) when Customs officers retain it as material evidence during an investigation. A Division Bench of Justices G. Jayachandran and N. Mala allowed a writ appeal filed by the Principal Commissioner of Customs against an order directing the release of Rs. 21.55 lakh recovered from...

Criminal Court Cannot Order Release Of Seized Goods Without Customs Cognizance: Gauhati High Court

The Gauhati High Court on 13 August held that a regular criminal court cannot exercise powers under the general criminal law to release goods seized under the Customs Act when no cognizance of a Customs offence has been taken. Justice Mridul Kumar Kalita allowed a criminal petition filed by the Deputy Director, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Dimapur Regional Unit, challenging the 12 March 2026 order of the Principal District and Sessions Judge/Special Judge, Dimapur. The order had...

Karnataka High Court Sets Aside Advance Ruling On Kitchen Exhaust Hoods In Halton India's Case

The Karnataka High Court on 6 August held that the Customs Authority for Advance Rulings must examine material produced by an importer to determine whether kitchen exhaust hoods contain fans before deciding their tariff classification. A Division Bench comprising Justices S.G. Pandit and K. Manmadha Rao set aside the Authority's order dated 25 March 2026 after finding that material submitted by Halton India Pvt. Ltd. to establish that its imported exhaust hoods contain fans had not been...

Delhi High Court Declines Common Adjudication Of Three Customs SCNs Despite Overlapping Evidence

The Delhi High Court has refused to order common adjudication of three show cause notices arising out of a single Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) investigation, holding that although there was substantial overlap in the material relied upon by the Department, the notices had distinct subject matters and arose at different stages of the alleged transactions.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain also declined to entertain challenges to the customs adjudication...

Equipment Returned From Free Trade Warehousing Zone Under Fresh Contract Is 'Fresh Import', Not Re-Import: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the return of petroleum operations equipment from a Free Trade Warehousing Zone (FTWZ) to the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) pursuant to a fresh contract and a subsequent Essentiality Certificate (EC) constitutes a fresh import and not a re-import.The division bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain held that merely because the equipment was physically the same as that which had earlier been imported into India, it could not be treated as a re-import. “A...

Litigant Cannot Blame Counsel For 968-Day Delay In Customs Appeal Without Explaining Inaction: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that a litigant cannot seek condonation of an inordinate delay by merely blaming their counsel for failing to communicate an order, especially when the litigant themselves remained inactive and made no enquiry about the outcome of the proceedings for nearly three years.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain dismissed three customs appeals challenging CESTAT 's refusal to condone a delay of approximately 968 days in filing appeals against...

Madras High Court Directs Provisional Release Of 119 Machines, Rejects Retrospective Customs Rule

The Madras High Court on 3 August held that a Customs notification that came into force after the shipment of imported goods could not be applied retrospectively to deny provisional release of the goods. Justice Hemant Chandangoudar directed the Customs authorities to consider the request of S.P. Associates, represented by its proprietor Yogendra Pratap, for provisional release of 119 used digital multifunction printing, copying and scanning machines imported under a Bill of Entry dated 17 July...

Delhi High Court Upholds Customs Broker Licence Revocation For Using Another Broker's Credentials

The Delhi High Court has upheld the revocation of a Customs Broker's licence after finding that it had consciously undertaken clearance-related activities using the credentials of another Customs Broker in relation to goods which were prohibited for import.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetrapal and Shail Jain held that the consent or knowledge of the Customs Broker whose credentials were used could not authorise another broker to undertake Customs Broker functions using those...