Customs amendment requests cannot be rejected solely for lack of circular support when notification conditions are verifiable.

Amendment of Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills under the Customs Act, 1962 may be considered for regularisation under the jobbing scheme where the relevant notification conditions are capable of verification. A request cannot be refused merely because Circular No. 4/2004 does not expressly provide for conversion, if the statutory amendment power is invoked and the jurisdictional authority must examine compliance with Notification No. 32/97 on merits. The matter was therefore required to be reconsidered to determine whether those conditions were satisfied or verifiable, and, if so, the request could be allowed.

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Issues: Whether the request for amendment/conversion of the Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills could be considered under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 for regularisation under the jobbing scheme, and whether the matter should be rejected solely on the basis of Circular No. 4/2004.

Analysis: The request was rejected by the original authority only on the ground that the Board's circular did not provide for conversion to the jobbing scheme. The substantive question was whether the appellants could satisfy the conditions of Notification No. 32/97 and whether such compliance could be verified by the jurisdictional authority. Since the statutory power of amendment was invoked and the rejection was not based on a finding that the notification conditions were in fact unfulfilled or incapable of verification, the matter required reconsideration on merits.

Conclusion: The request could not be rejected solely on the basis of Circular No. 4/2004; the matter was remanded to determine whether the conditions of Notification No. 32/97 were complied with or capable of verification, and if so, the request was to be allowed.

Ratio Decidendi: A request for amendment under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 cannot be refused merely because an administrative circular does not expressly contemplate it, if the relevant notification conditions are capable of verification and are found to be satisfied.

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