Show cause notice and personal hearing mandatory before confiscation; pre-printed or uninformed waivers are ineffective.

Issuance of a written show cause notice and provision of a reasonable opportunity for personal hearing are mandatory under the Customs statutory scheme before goods may be confiscated; this protection, rooted in natural justice, cannot be ousted by pre-printed or uninformed waivers. Waivers effective in recovery-of-duty contexts do not automatically apply to confiscation because the statutory consequences differ, and a valid waiver requires a voluntary, informed and conscious decision. A confiscation order passed without complying with the notice and personal-hearing requirement is vulnerable to being set aside as legally defective.

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Issues: Whether issuance of a show cause notice and grant of personal hearing under Section 124 of the Customs Act is mandatory prior to passing a confiscation order even where the importer had earlier executed a waiver of show cause notice and personal hearing.

Analysis: Section 124 of the Customs Act mandates issuance of a written show cause notice and a reasonable opportunity of hearing before goods are confiscated or penalties imposed; this requirement is rooted in the principles of natural justice and is directed to protect the serious civil consequences of confiscation. Section 28 deals with recovery of duties and serves a different purpose; waivers in that context may be effective where voluntarily and informed, but the statutory scheme and consequences of confiscation under Section 124 distinguish the two provisions. Pre-printed or standard-form waivers and waivers obtained without full disclosure and a conscious informed decision are not valid to oust the mandatory safeguards of Section 124. The adjudicatory rule requiring a show cause notice and personal hearing under Section 124 is essential to avoid prejudice to the importer and to prevent the confiscation order from being a legal nullity.

Conclusion: The requirement to issue a show cause notice and afford personal hearing under Section 124 of the Customs Act is mandatory and cannot be effectively waived by the importer by means of pre-printed or uninformed waivers; the impugned confiscation order passed without compliance with Section 124 and without affording personal hearing is quashed and the writ petition is allowed in favour of the petitioner.

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