https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=449171 Section 142A of the Customs Act creates a first charge for customs dues, but it also saves the operation of the SARFAESI Act. Read with section 35 of SARFAESI, the secured creditor's enforcement rights prevail over an inconsistent customs claim, so customs authorities cannot restrain recovery steps against mortgaged assets. The settled principle that, absent a statutory preference, secured debt takes priority over Crown debt was also applied. The communication issued during customs investigation therefore could not block the secured creditor from proceeding with sale and recovery under SARFAESI. en-us Tue, 16 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0530 Tue, 20 Aug 2024 14:44:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=449171 Section 142A of the Customs Act creates a first charge for customs dues, but it also saves the operation of the SARFAESI Act. Read with section 35 of SARFAESI, the secured creditor's enforcement rights prevail over an inconsistent customs claim, so customs authorities cannot restrain recovery steps against mortgaged assets. The settled principle that, absent a statutory preference, secured debt takes priority over Crown debt was also applied. The communication issued during customs investigation therefore could not block the secured creditor from proceeding with sale and recovery under SARFAESI. Case-Laws Customs Tue, 16 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=449171