2015 (6) TMI 499 - HC - Customs

Court orders Customs Commissioner to refund Special Additional Duty (SAD) amount to petitioner.

The court directed the Deputy Commissioner of Customs to refund the Special Additional Duty (SAD) amount claimed by the petitioner within six weeks from ... Denial of refund claim of SAD - non-fulfillment of the conditions against paragraph 2(e)(ii) of the Notification No.102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007 - Held that:- Admittedly, the petitioner had preferred appeals against the Order-in-Original passed by the third respondent and after granting an opportunity of personal hearing, the second respondent allowed the appeals filed by the petitioner. Pursuant thereto, the petitioner has made a request for refund of the SAD amount. In the light of the above, recording the submission of the learned counsel for the respondents, if no further appeal is filed, the third respondent is hereby directed to refund the SAD amount of ₹ 20,672/- and ₹ 1,36,427/- vide representation dated 15.7.2014, within a period of six weeks - Decided in favour of assessee. Issues involved:1. Refund claim under Notification No.102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007.2. Rejection of refund claims by the Deputy Commissioner of Customs.3. Appeals filed before the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), Chennai.4. Request for refund of Special Additional Duty (SAD) amount.5. Compliance with court orders for similar refund requests.Detailed Analysis:1. The petitioner sought a refund under Notification No.102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007 after importing goods and paying the necessary duties, including the special additional duty of customs. The Deputy Commissioner of Customs rejected the refund claims citing non-fulfillment of conditions under paragraph 2(e)(ii) of the said notification as amended.2. The petitioner appealed the rejection before the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), Chennai, who allowed the appeals after a personal hearing. The petitioner then requested the refund of the SAD amount, which was acknowledged by the Deputy Commissioner but not processed further.3. The court noted that the petitioner had already appealed and obtained favorable orders from the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals). The court directed the Deputy Commissioner to refund the SAD amount claimed by the petitioner within six weeks if no further appeal was filed.4. The petitioner's counsel highlighted previous instances where the court had directed similar refunds based on Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) orders. The respondents assured that the pending representation for refund would be duly considered if no further appeal was filed.5. Ultimately, the court disposed of the writ petition, ordering the Deputy Commissioner to refund the SAD amount claimed by the petitioner within six weeks from the date of the court order, emphasizing compliance with the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) decision and the petitioner's right to the refund as per the applicable customs notifications.