Rectification of Mistake granted in Customs Act case, clarifying undeclared goods issue

The Appellate Tribunal CESTAT NEW DELHI allowed the Rectification of Mistake (ROM) application filed by the Revenue under Section 129B (2) of the Customs Act, 1962. The Tribunal rectified errors in its previous orders related to undeclared cargo, acknowledging mistakes in references and omissions. The revised order clarified that the Department has the authority to address the issue of undeclared goods, including collecting customs duty, penalties, and fines. The ROM was granted, and the amended order was issued on 09.01.2020.

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Issues:
Rectification of Mistake (ROM) under Section 129B (2) of Customs Act, 1962 in Final Order No. C/A/50777/2019-CU (DB) dated 17.06.2019.

Analysis:
The Appellate Tribunal CESTAT NEW DELHI, comprising HON’BLE MR. ANIL CHOUDHARY, MEMBER (JUDICIAL) and HON’BLE MR. BIJAY KUMAR, MEMBER (TECHNICAL), addressed a Miscellaneous Application filed by the Revenue seeking Rectification of Mistake (ROM) under Section 129B (2) of the Customs Act, 1962. The ROM sought to amend the Final Order dated 17.06.2019, specifically focusing on setting aside the Order-in-Original related to undeclared cargo found in a container. The Revenue requested to collect the applicable customs duty, penalty, and fine for the undeclared goods. Additionally, the application highlighted an error in a corrigendum dated 28.09.2016, where the Additional Commissioner, ICD Tughlakabad was incorrectly referred to as the Commissioner of Customs.

Upon hearing the parties and examining the ROM Application, the Tribunal acknowledged the inadvertent error in the corrigendum dated 28.09.2016, where the Additional Commissioner of Customs was mistakenly referred to as the Commissioner of Customs. The Tribunal recognized this error and corrected it as per the prayer made by the Revenue. Furthermore, the Tribunal identified an error in its Final Order dated 17.06.2019, where the issue of collecting duty, fine, and penalty for undeclared goods was inadvertently set aside. The Tribunal deemed this as an apparent error and rectifiable under Section 129 B(2) of the Customs Act.

Consequently, the Tribunal modified its order to rectify the error regarding setting aside the order concerning undeclared cargo. The Tribunal deleted the portion of the order dated 17.06.2019 related to undeclared goods. The concluding paragraph of the order was amended to clarify that the Department has the authority to deal with the matter, adjudicate the case concerning undeclared goods, and collect the applicable customs duty, fine, and penalty under the Customs Act, 1962. Ultimately, the ROM was allowed in the specified terms, with the order pronounced in open court on 09.01.2020.

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