Transporter penalty requires proof of knowledge or participation in clandestine removal, not mere carriage of packed goods.

A transporter cannot be subjected to confiscation of the vehicle or personal penalty merely because packed goods were carried under bills and lorry receipts, where there is no material showing knowledge of or participation in clandestine removal. The Tribunal noted that the contents of sealed packages could not be physically verified, and that adverse findings based on assumptions, including an unsupported prior detention reference, were insufficient. Acceptance of goods for transport did not by itself prove guilty knowledge of non-duty-paid character. On that footing, confiscation of the truck and penalty on the transporter were held unsustainable in the absence of evidence linking him to the evasion.

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Issues: Whether confiscation of the truck and imposition of penalty on the transporter were justified in the absence of evidence showing participation in or knowledge of clandestine removal of the goods.

Analysis: The goods were booked and transported in packed condition on the strength of bills and lorry receipts, and the transporter's case was that the contents of the packages could not be verified physically. The adverse finding of the adjudicating authority rested largely on assumptions, including an unsupported reference to an earlier detention of the vehicle. There was no material on record to show that the appellant was a party to the manufacturer's clandestine removal or had knowledge that the goods were non-duty-paid. The Tribunal's earlier view that acceptance of goods for transport does not by itself establish knowledge of their illicit character supported the appellant's case.

Conclusion: Confiscation of the truck and personal penalty on the appellant were not sustainable.

Final Conclusion: The transporter could not be fastened with liability merely because the goods transported were later found inconsistent with the description in the documents, when there was no ative material linking him to the clandestine removal or showing guilty knowledge.

Ratio Decidendi: A transporter cannot be subjected to confiscation or penalty under Rule 209A of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 merely on suspicion or on the basis of transported packed goods unless there is evidence of knowledge of, or participation in, clandestine removal.

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