Free export status preserved despite advance licence breach; confiscation under Customs law was unsustainable.

Export of moong dal was not a prohibited or restricted export, so breach of an advance licence condition did not attract confiscation under Section 113(d) of the Customs Act. Non-compliance with the licence condition could affect credit against the import obligation, but it did not transform a free export into a prohibited export. Confiscation and penalty were therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the export of processed pulses was liable to confiscation under Section 113(d) of the Customs Act merely because the export was made in breach of the conditions of an advance licence.

Analysis: The export of moong dal was not prohibited or restricted and did not require any licence for export. The only objection was that the goods were sought to be exported in fulfilment of an obligation under an advance licence without complying with a condition attached to that licence. Non-compliance with the licence condition may justify denial of credit towards fulfilment of the import obligation, but it does not convert an otherwise free export into a prohibited export.

Conclusion: The export was not prohibited within the meaning of Section 113(d) of the Customs Act, and confiscation and penalty were unsustainable.

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