Time-barred show cause notice in provisional import assessment struck down; appeal allowed and consequential relief granted.

A show cause notice issued after the normal limitation period in a provisional import assessment was held time-barred; the tribunal set aside the notice and allowed the appeal, granting consequential relief. The decision rested on limitation/extended limitation principles and precedent recognising contemporaneous classification dispute over tariff heading, so the impugned measures for mis-declaration, confiscation, penalties and interest were not examined on merits. The effect is that notices issued beyond the permissible period in comparable provisional assessment cases cannot be sustained, and appellants are entitled to relief where limitation bars departmental action.

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Issues: (i) Whether the show cause notice and consequent demand issued beyond the normal period of limitation (time-bar) is liable to be struck down.

Analysis: The proceedings concern an allegation of incorrect classification and invocation of the extended limitation under Section 28(4) of the Customs Act, 1962. Relevant legal principles include that a show cause notice must set out specific allegations so the recipient can meet them, and that if a demand is found to be time-barred the tribunal need not examine merits. Factual material shows the goods underwent physical examination and were finally assessed and cleared following a first-check appraisal and duty payment more than one year before issuance of the show cause notice. The content and framing of the notice do not raise the substantive point relied upon later by the department; procedural defects in the notice and issuance beyond the normal period render the notice vulnerable to challenge. Coordinate decisions addressing similar imports and the settled proposition that limitation, when validly raised, precludes adjudication on merits are applicable.

Conclusion: The show cause notice and consequential demand are time-barred and are set aside; appeal allowed in favour of the importer-assessee.

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