Clerical error in shipping bills cannot defeat MEIS entitlement when exporter's intention to claim the benefit was clearly declared.

Gujarat HC treated a clerical error in the shipping bill reward column as insufficient to defeat a claim for MEIS export incentive where the exporter had otherwise clearly declared an intention to seek the benefit. It held that the Handbook of Procedures was facilitative, not restrictive, and that a technical mistake by the customs agent could not override the substantive entitlement arising from the documents. The refusal to grant the benefit was therefore unjustified, the notice was quashed, and the authorities were directed to amend the shipping bills and enable online correction so the claim could be processed.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner was entitled to claim MEIS benefit despite the shipping bills having been filed with the reward column marked "No" instead of "Yes", and whether the authorities were justified in refusing amendment of the shipping bills and denial of the benefit on that ground.

Analysis: The petitioner had expressly declared in the shipping documents an intention to claim benefit under the MEIS scheme. The dispute arose from a technical error in selection of the reward column by the customs agent, resulting in the online system reflecting "No". The Court treated the relevant procedure under the Handbook of Procedures 2015-2020 as enabling compliance with the scheme rather than defeating entitlement where the exporter's intention was otherwise . It held that a mere procedural lapse or clerical error could not override the substantive claim to the export incentive, especially when the declaration of intent was already made in the documents.

Conclusion: The refusal to grant MEIS benefit was unjustified. The petitioner was held entitled to the scheme benefit, the impugned notice was quashed, and the authorities were directed to amend the shipping bills and enable the online correction so that the export incentive claim could be processed.

Ratio Decidendi: A technical or clerical mistake in the shipping bill does not defeat entitlement to a beneficial export incentive scheme where the exporter has otherwise manifested a clear intention to claim the benefit and the governing procedure is only facilitative.

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