Retrospective application of an interim stay to imports already...

Retrospective application of an interim stay to imports already covered by a lawful BIS-free regime was held impermissible. The Court noted that the petitioner had entered into concluded commercial transactions during the subsistence of the rescission notification, and that bills of lading for the relevant containers had been issued before the stay order. As these foundational facts were uncontested and the matter was covered by earlier decisions, customs authorities acted arbitrarily in withholding clearance and insisting on BIS certification. The cargo hold was unsustainable, and the writ petition was allowed in terms of the substantive relief sought.

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