https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=186403 A penal customs provision covering persons concerned in illegal importation was construed strictly because it was criminal in character. The offence of importation was treated as complete when goods crossed the customs barrier in breach of the prohibition or restriction; later acts such as melting smuggled gold or destroying evidence did not form part of the importation offence. On that basis, post-importation handling, even with knowledge that the gold was smuggled, did not make the petitioners persons concerned in the importation under Section 167(8) of the Sea Customs Act. The penalty was therefore held to be without jurisdiction and liable to be quashed. en-us Fri, 06 Nov 1959 00:00:00 +0530 Fri, 16 Sep 2016 15:58:33 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=186403 A penal customs provision covering persons concerned in illegal importation was construed strictly because it was criminal in character. The offence of importation was treated as complete when goods crossed the customs barrier in breach of the prohibition or restriction; later acts such as melting smuggled gold or destroying evidence did not form part of the importation offence. On that basis, post-importation handling, even with knowledge that the gold was smuggled, did not make the petitioners persons concerned in the importation under Section 167(8) of the Sea Customs Act. The penalty was therefore held to be without jurisdiction and liable to be quashed. Case-Laws Customs Fri, 06 Nov 1959 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=186403