Customs duty refund fails where claimed apportionment of imported goods is unsupported by invoices and clearance records.

Customs duty refund was denied because the imported consignment had been cleared on payment of duty in the appellant's name, and no invoice or supporting document was produced to show that part of the goods belonged to another authority. The customs assessment was completed on the material before the authorities, and any later internal apportionment of the goods was held irrelevant to customs liability. Withholding the relevant invoice justified an adverse presumption against the appellant, so the refund claim was rejected and the earlier orders were upheld.

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Issues: Whether the appellant was entitled to refund of customs duty on the footing that only part of the imported goods was for its own requirement and the balance was attributable to another authority.

Analysis: The imported consignment was cleared by the appellant on payment of duty, and the consignee shown in the bill of lading was the appellant. No invoice or supporting document for the balance quantity was produced despite opportunity. The customs authorities had completed assessment and clearance on the material before them, and the subsequent internal apportionment of the goods was held irrelevant to the customs liability. The withholding of the relevant invoice gave rise to an adverse presumption against the appellant.

Conclusion: The claim for refund was rejected and the earlier orders were upheld.

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