The High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the final...

The High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the final assessment order levying export duty on iron ore fines and pellets based on the Dry Metric Tonne (DMT) basis. The Court found no dispute regarding the private test report relied upon by the assessing authority and the first appellate authority. While there were submissions questioning the timing of the test report, the Court accepted the revenue's reliance on the circular dated 17th November 2014, which prescribed the procedure for uniform, transparent, and consistent assessment of export of iron ore fines and pellets. The Court held that the contractual specifications could not be solely relied upon for determining the export duty payable, and the authorities rightly considered the private test report for final assessment.

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