Tungsten carbide tips misdeclared as scrap: admission, test report and verified records sustained classification and penalties.

Recovered tungsten carbide tips were found to be misdeclared as brass scrap, and the supporting purchase bills were verified as false. The appellant's belated retraction was rejected because it was uncorroborated and inconsistent with earlier statements and the surrounding material. A chemical examiner's report identified the goods as tungsten carbide tips for tools, and that evidence together with the admission established their true nature. Classification under Heading 8209 was therefore upheld, and the confiscation, differential duty demand and penalty were sustained.

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Issues: Whether the recovered tungsten carbide tips were correctly classified under Heading 8209 and whether the confiscation, differential duty and penalty could be sustained on the basis of the material on record.

Analysis: The goods were recovered from the appellant's premises and the managing partner had stated that the tungsten carbide tips were imported and cleared in the guise of brass scrap. The alleged retraction was held to be of no avail because it came after earlier appearances before the authorities and was not supported by the surrounding material. The purchase bills produced by the appellant were found to be false on verification. The chemical examiner's report identified the goods as tips for tools of tungsten carbide, and the admission together with the test report established the true nature of the goods.

Conclusion: The goods were held to be tungsten carbide tips classifiable under Heading 8209, and the order of confiscation, duty demand and penalty was sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: A belated and uncorroborated retraction does not displace an admission when the admission is supported by a chemical examination report and other verified material establishing the true classification of the goods.

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