TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2013 (9) TMI 66
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....try, the appellant did not file any freight bill and, therefore, the value of freight was taken as 20% of the FOB value and the goods were assessed to duty accordingly. The appellant noticed the mistake and immediately thereafter, on 02/05/2009, furnished the freight bill for the transaction and sought amendment of the Bill of Entry under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962. They also filed a refund claim for the excess duty paid of Rs.15,02,622/-. While the request of the appellant for amendment of the Bill of Entry under Section 149 was pending, the refund claim was rejected on the ground that the appellant did not challenge the assessment and, therefore, in view of the decision of he hon'ble apex Court in the case of Priya Blue Industri....
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....r, the EPCG section on 24/06/2009 made the notings that the amendment to the Bill of Entry, could be considered under Sect6ion 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 based on the documents existing at the time of import. However, since the importer had furnished wrong details in the Bill of Entry, the same warrants invoking of penal provisions under Section 117 of the Customs Act, for violation of Section 46. Thereafter, so many notings were recorded in the file and ultimately the Commissioner vide order dated 25/10/2010 noted that "the letter of party dated 02/05/2009 may be considered as refund application as it has been held in such cases that letter of party (even though not on prescribed format) can be considered as a refund application. If the ....
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....lear from the records that the appellant committed an error in not declaring the freight amount at the time of filing of the Bill of Entry and did not submit the invoice for the freight paid. Nevertheless on 02/05/2009, within a period of two weeks from the date of filing of the Bill of Entry, the appellant produced the commercial invoice indicating the payment of freight vide invoice dated 02/04/2009 issued by Lift & Shift India Pvt. Ltd., the shipping agent and sought amendment of the Bill of Entry under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962. Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 provides that: "the proper officer may, in his discretion, authorise any document, after it has been presented in the custom house to be amended : &....
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....ccordingly. In spite of such decision by the superior authorities, the lower authority has chosen to disregard the direction of the Commissioner and deny the relief to the appellant. 5.1 Even the decision of the hon'ble Madras High Court in the Thiru Arooran Sugars Ltd. case, cited supra, dealt with a different situation altogether. In that case the respondent was not able to indicate why the Customs Officer ought to have exercised the discretion under Section 149. It was in that context the hon'ble High Court held that rejection of amendment under Section 149 was justified. These are not the facts obtaining in the present case before us. In the present case there is a genuine error committed by the appellant in not filing the freight bill....