https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=407526 Where adjudication proceedings on the same facts end in exoneration on merits, a criminal prosecution founded on the same material may be treated as an abuse of process if the essential ingredients of the offence are not established. The Court noted that the adjudication authority found only dereliction of duty and no proof of extraneous considerations, while the customs appellate tribunal set aside penalties and rejected allegations of abetment or collusion. Despite the different standards of proof in adjudication and criminal proceedings, the prior merits-based exoneration was decisive, and the discharge of the accused was upheld. en-us Thu, 06 May 2021 00:00:00 +0530 Tue, 30 Jun 2026 09:55:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=407526 Where adjudication proceedings on the same facts end in exoneration on merits, a criminal prosecution founded on the same material may be treated as an abuse of process if the essential ingredients of the offence are not established. The Court noted that the adjudication authority found only dereliction of duty and no proof of extraneous considerations, while the customs appellate tribunal set aside penalties and rejected allegations of abetment or collusion. Despite the different standards of proof in adjudication and criminal proceedings, the prior merits-based exoneration was decisive, and the discharge of the accused was upheld. Case-Laws Customs Thu, 06 May 2021 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=407526