2017 (11) TMI 1340

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....DER (PER : HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE AKIL KURESHI) 1. The petitioners have prayed for a direction for release of sum of Rs. 10 lakhs and the Bank Guarantees of Rs. 10 lakhs each, totalling to Rs. 20 lakhs given by the petitioners to the Department. 2. Facts in short are as under:- 2.1 The petitioners were in the process of exporting "Basmati" rice. The Department had dispute about the descriptio....

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....ioners therefore wrote to the Department on 01.04.2013 and requested the Department to release the sum of Rs. 10 lakhs of redemption fine deposited by the petitioners. Since there was no response to this request, the petitioners once again wrote to the Department on 12.10.2013 and thereafter, on 13.02.2016. The petitioners received no response to any of these letters, upon which the present petiti....

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....d Advocate Mr.Lodha for the Department opposed the petition contending that there is no provision contained in the Customs Act, 1962 for granting interest under such circumstances. Further, the Department had preferred appeals before the High Court against the judgment of the Tribunal. Some of the appeals are still pending. He relied on the decision of the Supreme Court in case of Union of India &....

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....s been granted. Within a reasonable time after the judgment of the Tribunal, therefore, the Department was expected in law to implement the directions, which would result into refund of sum of Rs. 10 lakhs deposited by the petitioners and releasing of Bank Guarantees. Though the petitioners reminded the Department on numerous occasions, this was not done for over three years. The Department must p....