Duty on cleared goods follows the clearance date, not detention, and a withdrawn exemption cannot be claimed later.

Duty on goods detained before withdrawal of an exemption is chargeable at the rate in force on the date of clearance, because the Tribunal applied the statutory rule that the applicable duty is determined by the clearance date, not the detention date. The assessee's reliance on an earlier High Court ruling was rejected since that relief had been granted in extraordinary writ jurisdiction and did not govern the present claim. The further plea for an additional exemption was not entertained because it had not been raised before the lower authority. The duty was therefore correctly levied at the clearance-rate, and no relief was available.

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Issues: Whether duty on goods detained by the authorities and cleared after withdrawal of the exemption was payable at the rate prevailing on the date of detention or on the date of clearance, and whether the assessee could claim the withdrawn exemption.

Analysis: The goods were detained before the exemption was withdrawn, but they were cleared only after the withdrawal took effect. The Tribunal applied the settled principle that statutory authorities must act strictly according to the statute, and that the relevant duty rate is the rate in force on the date of clearance. The plea based on the earlier High Court decision was not accepted as that relief had been granted in extraordinary writ jurisdiction. The additional exemption plea was not entertained since it had not been raised before the lower authority.

Conclusion: The duty was correctly levied at the rate applicable on the date of clearance, and the assessee was not entitled to relief.

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