Customs Department's Review Petition allowed, no contempt found, directed to appeal before Tribunal promptly.

The High Court allowed the Review Petition filed by the Customs Department, recognizing their statutory right to appeal within the prescribed time. The Court concluded that there was no contempt as the appeal was filed within the statutory period. Parties were directed to participate in the appeal proceedings before the Tribunal, which was instructed to dispose of the appeal promptly. The Review Application and Contempt Petition were both disposed of without costs.

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Issues Involved:
1. Review Petition of the Customs Department.
2. Contempt Petition by M/s. Himachal Exim.
3. Finality of the Appellate Authority's order.
4. Appeal time and statutory rights of the Customs Department.
5. Jurisdiction and grounds for review.

Issue-wise Detailed Analysis:

1. Review Petition of the Customs Department:
The Customs Department filed a Review Petition seeking to review the order dated 03.02.2015 passed by the High Court in W.P.No.32237 of 2014. The main contention was that the order was passed under the misconception that the Appellate Authority's order had become final since no appeal was filed by the Department. However, the Customs Department argued that they still had time until 17.02.2015 to file an appeal, and thus, the order had not become final. The Department had indeed filed an appeal within the stipulated time, which was taken on file by the Tribunal.

2. Contempt Petition by M/s. Himachal Exim:
M/s. Himachal Exim filed a Contempt Petition against the Customs Department for not complying with the High Court's order dated 03.02.2015, which directed the release of goods covered under the Bills of Entry dated 07.01.2013. The petitioner argued that the Customs Department committed contempt by not implementing the order and instead preferred an appeal before the Tribunal without disclosing the High Court's order.

3. Finality of the Appellate Authority's Order:
The High Court had initially observed that the order of the Commissioner (Appeals-II) had become final as no appeal was filed by the Department. However, it was later clarified that the Customs Department still had time to file an appeal, and hence, the order had not become final. The Tribunal had initially granted an interim order but later recalled it upon learning about the High Court's order.

4. Appeal Time and Statutory Rights of the Customs Department:
The Customs Department received the Appellate Authority's order on 18.11.2014 and had until 17.02.2015 to file an appeal. The Department filed the appeal within this period, and the Tribunal took it on file. The High Court recognized that the statutory right to appeal should not be deprived due to mere technicalities, and the Customs Department had the right to file an appeal within the prescribed time.

5. Jurisdiction and Grounds for Review:
The review jurisdiction is limited to correcting errors apparent on the face of the record and not for re-hearing the case on merits. The High Court referred to various judgments to emphasize that review is permissible only for correcting mistakes or errors apparent on the face of the record or for any other sufficient reason. The High Court found that the order dated 03.02.2015 did not suffer from any apparent error but acknowledged that it was passed under a misconception regarding the finality of the Appellate Authority's order.

Conclusion:
The High Court concluded that there was no contempt of court by the Customs Department as they had filed an appeal within the statutory period. The Review Petition was allowed to the extent that the Customs Department's statutory right to appeal was recognized. The parties were directed to participate in the appeal proceedings before the Tribunal, which was instructed to dispose of the appeal expeditiously. The Review Application and the Contempt Petition were disposed of with no costs.

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