2015 (1) TMI 119

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....stoms (Export) (Adjudicating Authority) for the purpose of entertaining the Appellants appeal on merits. 2. The following questions of law have been raised for our consideration by the Appellant:     (i) Whether in the facts and circumstances of the case and the law and especially being that, when the freight forwarder without consulting the CHA proceeds to direct the Shipping Line for loading of Containers on the Vessel and the Vessel sails prior to issue of Let Export Order, whether it was appropriate and correct in law for the Tribunal to direct the Appellant to predeposit the 25% of the penalty imposed by the Respondent No.2 i.e. Rs. 1.75 lakhs instead of granting complete waiver from predeposit of the entire penalt....

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....eing loaded without LEO, the goods loaded are liable for confiscation under Section 113(g) of the Act. In view of the failure of the CHA to ensure that the goods are loaded only after LEO a penalty of Rs. 7 lakhs was imposed upon the Appellant under Section 114(iii) of the Act by the Adjudicating Authority to reach the above conclusion. In support, reliance was placed upon Customs Manual, indicating the responsibility of the CHA as an agent of the exporter visavis the LEO. 5. The grievance of the Appellant both before the Tribunal as also before us is that once the goods covered by the Shipping Bills go into the Docks, the CHA has no access to it. Therefore, it could not have obtained the LEO. Besides, in the present case, absence of men....

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....atters where CHA such as the Appellant have been imposed penalty for the goods being loaded on foreign going vessel without having obtained the necessary LEO from the Customs. The Tribunal also relied upon the Customs Manual which specifically casts an obligation on the exporter or his agent to have the goods examined by the Customs. In this case, the CHA was obliged to present the goods to the shed appraiser (export) in docks for examination and it is only after examination of the goods that an LEO is passed. In this case, the impugned order records the fact that the Appellant was at all times aware that the vessel was to sale out of India on 9th October, 2009 and, therefore, ought to have ensured that the goods are examined before they ar....