Broad review power under foreign trade law upheld for the Director General, including review of judicial orders

Section 16 of the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 was construed as conferring a broad review power on the Director General of Foreign Trade, exercisable suo motu or otherwise, with authority to examine the record for correctness, legality or propriety of an order. That language was treated as wide enough to extend to review of even judicial orders. The decision relied on under the Delhi Development Act, 1957 was distinguished because the two statutes were not pari materia and their schemes differed materially. The Director General was therefore held to have jurisdiction to entertain and decide the review applications, and the challenge to that power failed.

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Issues: Whether the Director General of Foreign Trade had power under Section 16 of the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 to review the impugned orders, including on the basis of an application by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, and whether the writ petitions seeking to restrain such review were maintainable.

Analysis: Section 16 was read as conferring wide review power on the Director General, exercisable on his own motion or otherwise, and as permitting examination of the records of any proceeding to test the correctness, legality or propriety of the decision or order. The expression used in the provision was treated as broad enough to include review of judicial orders as well. The earlier decision relied upon, dealing with a different statutory scheme under the Delhi Development Act, 1957, was held to be inapplicable because the two enactments were not pari materia and their schemes were materially different.

Conclusion: The Director General of Foreign Trade had jurisdiction to entertain and decide the review applications, and the challenge to that power failed.

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