Type approval certificate for imported vehicles is mainly a registration issue, not a customs confiscation basis.

Confiscation of an imported vehicle for non-production of a type approval certificate was held unsustainable. The type approval certificate was treated as relevant to the vehicle's safety and roadworthiness for public use, a matter to be examined by the registering authority at the time of registration rather than by Customs at import stage. Since the vehicle was manufactured by a well-known maker and similar vehicles had been imported earlier, the assumption that it was unfit for road use was untenable. Confiscation was therefore not justified, and the Revenue's challenge failed.

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Issues: Whether confiscation of an imported vehicle for non-production of a type approval certificate was sustainable.

Analysis: The vehicle was manufactured by a well-known manufacturer and similar vehicles had been imported earlier. The type approval certificate was treated as relevant primarily for ensuring that the vehicle is safe and roadworthy for public use, a matter to be considered by the registering authority at the time of registration and not by the Customs authority at the stage of import. The assumption that the importer had brought in a vehicle unfit for road use was found to be untenable.

Conclusion: Confiscation for non-production of the type approval certificate was not justified, and the appeal by the Revenue failed.

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