2003 (12) TMI 397

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....nd M/s. Hoegh Lines. Initially the appeal was filed against M/s. Alok Overseas only. Subsequently, Shri P.K. Jain and M/s. Hoegh Lines have been impleaded as respondents 2 and 3 at the instance of the appellant vide Misc. Order No. 109/2003/NB(A), dated 30-5-2003 and Misc. Order No. 148/2003/NB(A), dated 21-7-2003. 2. The facts of the case are briefly as under :- M/s. Alok Overseas had imported goods in Container No. TRLU-2637741 which arrived at ICD, Tuglakabad on 23-3-99. The container belonged to the 3rd respondent, M/s. Hoegh Lines. The imported consignment was covered by a Bill of Lading dated 30-1-99 wherein the contents of the container were declared as "Brass Scrap ISRI Honey" and the weight thereof was declared as 20,223 Kg....

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....ots in the Bill of Lading with intent to evade Customs duty on the goods. It was felt that the seized goods were liable to confiscation under various provisions of Section 111 of the Act and, further, that the M/s. Alok Overseas and Shri P.K. Jain were liable to penal action under Section 112 of the Act. The show cause notice dated 10-3-2000 followed. The proposals for confiscating the container and the goods and for imposing penalties on the importers were contested. The Commissioner of Customs, who adjudicated the disputes, passed the impugned order, the operative part of which reads as under :- "Discussion and findings recorded by me hereinafore, evidence that none of the charges, carved out in the show cause notice is legally sustain....

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....d through correspondence between the supplier, the importer, the persons incharge of the vessel and the departmental authorities and has found that the supplier as well as the Indian agent of M/s. Hoegh Lines had requested to the Customs authorities for amendment of the weight and description of the goods imported in Container No. TRLU-2637741. The Commissioner has found that such application for amendment in the IGM and Bill of Lading had been made prior to the date of issuance of the show cause notice. After examining the correspondences ourselves, we are satisfied that these findings of the Commissioner are unassailable. As a matter of fact, again, there is no categorical challenge to the said findings in the present appeal. M/s. Alok Ov....