2006 (3) TMI 368

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....eafter a Bill of Entry dated 9-1-1997 for clearance and payment of duty on the said vessel was filed. It is the Revenue's case that the officers of the department gathered intelligence that the assessee importer had started breaking the vessel without paying the Customs duty thereon. When they visited the subject plot belonging to the assessee-importer, where the vessel was barged, they found that the breaking of the vessel was in progress and pipelines on deck side had been dismantled and equipments of wireless & radio rooms had been removed. The Panchnama was drawn dated 14-1-1997 indicating the facts as observed on that date. A joint survey was conducted on 15-1-1997 wherein it was concluded that the breaking activities of the vessel wit....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....ing proper clearance under the provisions of Section 47 of the Customs Act; (ii)    there was suppression of the fact of the existence of cargo in the tank No. 8 (port side) and no steps were taken to file an IGM for clearing the said goods which have been cleared as unmanifested cargo and the vessel was therefore held to be used for carrying goods liable for confiscation. (iii)   As regards evasion of Customs duty on Sludge/Sediments, the same was held to be classified under sub-heading 2710.00 of the Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 and since the assessee did not supply any information with regard to commercial value, the assessable value of Rs. 26,70,933/- was arrived at by adopting Rs. 420/- per MT....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....Room, which was replied by the Assistant Commissioner of Customs, Bhavnagar saying that procedure for drawing the panchnama for having broken the Wireless equipments and Radio-Room started only after 1-9-97 and prior to this date no panchnama was drawn and confirmed vide his letter dated 29-7-2000 that one Inspector was deputed for examination of the vessel, who at that time was also attending the work regarding destruction of Radio-Room and Wireless equipments. (iii)    As regards the allegation that Shri Sanjay Mehta, Managing Director gave instruction to break the Wireless equipments and Radio-Room, it was submitted that Shri Sanjay Mehta only gave them okay to go ahead and break and had not permitted or and ordered any....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....ms Area. Therefore, the vessel cannot be said to have been removed from Customs Area before the out of charge order was given. The wireless equipment and Radio room were required to be broken to avoid misuse, as per instructions on the subject, and this was carried out by the officers of Customs in compliance to Board's instructions. The liability to confiscation under Section 111(j) of the Customs Act, 1962 therefore cannot be upheld. 6. In this view of the matter, when no conclusive evidence would be available for upholding the confiscation under Section 111(j) as regards the liability to duty of sludge/sediments, the marketability of the said item & use, has to be established and duty can be determined once it is found to be comm....