Bona fide import description defeated mis-declaration, so confiscation, redemption fine and penalty were set aside.

Import documents that described the goods as rice bran oil other than refined, filed with the Bill of Entry at import, did not support a finding of mis-declaration. The Tribunal treated the dispute as a bona fide disagreement over the exemption claim rather than deliberate concealment, and noted that customs duty and interest had already been paid and were not contested. On those facts, it found no basis to sustain confiscation, redemption fine or penalty, and set those consequences aside.

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Issues: Whether the import of unrefined rice bran oil, declared through the import documents and subsequently cleared on payment of customs duty and interest, warranted a finding of mis-declaration so as to sustain confiscation, redemption fine and penalty.

Analysis: The import documents themselves described the goods as rice bran oil other than refined, and the Tribunal found that these documents were filed along with the Bill of Entry at the time of import. On that basis, it held that the appellant had not intended to mis-declare the goods. The dispute was treated as a bona fide interpretation of the exemption claim, and not as a deliberate concealment. Since the customs duty and interest had already been paid and were not contested, the Tribunal found no justification for sustaining confiscation or penal consequences on the facts of the case.

Conclusion: The confiscation, redemption fine and penalty were set aside in favour of the assessee.

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