Destruction of obsolete or unusable duty-free inputs by a 100%...

Destruction of obsolete or unusable duty-free inputs by a 100% Export Oriented Unit within its factory, after intimation to the department, did not attract Customs or Central Excise duty where there was no diversion or misuse. The Foreign Trade Policy, Development Commissioner permissions and exemption notifications were required to be read as a composite scheme, so the absence of an express pre-amendment notification provision could not create an artificial duty liability. Amendments made in 2015 expressly permitting such destruction were clarificatory and retrospective because they aligned the notifications with the pre-existing policy position. Consequential interest and penalties were unsustainable without suppression, wilful misstatement or intent to evade duty.

---