Warehoused goods ex-bond clearance cannot attract Section 47 interest; the warehousing provisions control delayed clearance.

Warehoused goods cleared ex-bond under Section 68 were held to fall under the warehousing framework of Section 61, not Section 47 of the Customs Act, 1962. Interest for delayed clearance may arise only within the limits applicable to warehoused goods under Section 61, whereas Section 47 governs goods cleared for home consumption. On that reasoning, Section 47 interest could not be levied on ex-bond clearance of warehoused goods, and the contrary orders of the lower authorities were unsustainable.

---

---

Issues: Whether interest under Section 47 of the Customs Act, 1962 could be levied on ex-bond clearance of warehoused goods cleared under Section 68, and whether such goods were instead governed by Section 61.

Analysis: The goods were first warehoused and thereafter cleared ex-bond under Section 68. For such warehoused goods, the applicable framework was Section 61, under which interest may arise for detention beyond the permissible warehousing period. Section 47, which applies to goods cleared for home consumption, could not be invoked for charging interest on these ex-bond clearances.

Conclusion: Interest under Section 47 was not leviable on the impugned ex-bond clearances, and the orders of the lower authorities were unsustainable.

---