Unchallenged customs assessment cannot be reopened through refund proceedings; the proper remedy is a direct appeal.

A refund claim cannot be used to question the correctness of an appealable customs assessment that was not challenged in appeal. Where the Bill of Entry had already been assessed on classification of imported rubber seals and no appeal was filed, the completed assessment remained binding. A later attempt to seek refund on the basis of a different classification could not reopen that assessment. The proper remedy was to challenge the assessment order directly, and not to assail it indirectly through refund proceedings.

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Issues: Whether refund of customs duty could be claimed without challenging the assessment made in the Bill of Entry.

Analysis: The Bill of Entry had been assessed by classifying the imported rubber seals under sub-heading 4016.93 of the Customs Tariff Act, and no appeal was filed against that assessment. In view of the settled principle that an assessee cannot, by way of a refund claim, question the correctness of an unchallenged appealable assessment order, the subsequent change in classification was held not to reopen the completed assessment.

Conclusion: The refund claim was not maintainable without first challenging the assessment in appeal, and the appeal was rejected.

Ratio Decidendi: An assessee cannot assail the correctness of an unchallenged appealable assessment order indirectly through a refund claim; the proper remedy is to challenge the assessment in appeal.

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