Preferential duty benefit under a free trade agreement could not...

Preferential duty benefit under a free trade agreement could not be denied on a mechanical application of Public Notice No. 33/2024 where subsequent CBIC Instruction No. 23/2024-Customs and later public notices had superseded the earlier position. The Court held that the assessment order, which rested entirely on non-compliance with the impugned public notice, had lost its foundation once the later statutory and departmental directions came into force. It reiterated that trade-related instructions must conform to the statutory scheme and cannot dilute free trade agreement benefits or override law and CBIC circulars. The assessment was quashed and remanded for fresh consideration, with the importer's entitlement left open.

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