Customs exemption certificate condition satisfied where an Air Vice-Marshal issued the certificate and authenticity was established.

Exemption under the customs notification was accepted because the certificate condition was treated as substantially satisfied: the certificate on record was found authentic and genuine, and the issuing officer, an Air Vice-Marshal, was regarded as equivalent in protocol to a Joint Secretary to the Government of India. On that basis, the Tribunal held there was no ground to deny the benefit of the notification and the exemption was admissible.

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Issues: Whether the appellant was entitled to the exemption benefit under the customs notification despite the certificate being issued by an Air Vice-Marshal rather than an officer expressly described in the notification.

Analysis: The imported goods were claimed to fall under the exemption notification, and the dispute turned on compliance with the certificate condition. The certificate produced on record was found to be authentic and genuine. The correspondence placed before the Tribunal showed that the issuing officer held the rank of Air Vice-Marshal, which was stated to be equivalent in protocol to a Joint Secretary to the Government of India. In these circumstances, the Tribunal accepted that the substantive condition of certification by the competent authority stood satisfied and there was no basis to deny the exemption.

Conclusion: The issue was answered in favour of the assessee, and the exemption benefit was held admissible.

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