Court rules Customs cannot question license transfer, upholds petitioners' rights.

The High Court ruled in favor of the petitioners, holding that once a license is validly transferred to the petitioners, Customs Authorities cannot investigate the genuineness of the original license holder's exports. The court quashed the queries memo dated 6th February 1996, stating that as long as the license remains valid, Customs Authorities are bound by it. The rule was made absolute in favor of the petitioners, with a provision for the Respondents to take action on other grounds if necessary, in accordance with the law. No costs were awarded in the disposition of the petition.

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Issues:
Challenging a queries memo dated 6-2-1996 regarding sealed samples of export garment retained at the time of export made by the original license holder. Validity of transferred advance license and Customs Authorities' jurisdiction to investigate the genuineness of the license granted or exports made by the original license holder.

Analysis:
The petitioners challenged a queries memo dated 6-2-1996, requesting sealed samples of export garments retained at the time of export made by the original license holder. The petitioners, as transferees of the advance license, had the license validly transferred in their favor by the Licensing Authority. Once a license is transferred validly, Customs Authorities cannot investigate the genuineness of the license granted or exports made by the original license holder. The affidavit-in-reply alleged that the licenses were obtained through false statements and forged documents, necessitating verification of the license's genuineness.

The petitioners, as transferees of the advance license, imported goods using the license. As long as the license remains valid and no action is taken by the licensing authorities to suspend or cancel it, Customs Authorities are bound by the license. Therefore, issuing a queries memo to investigate the license's genuineness acquired by the petitioners was deemed unjustified. Consequently, the High Court quashed and set aside the query memo dated 6th February 1996, ruling in favor of the petitioners. The rule was made absolute in terms of the prayer clause (a), with a clarification that if the Respondents wish to take any action on other grounds, they may do so in accordance with the law. The petition was disposed of with no order as to costs.

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