2019 (3) TMI 1530

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....etween 19.02.2008 and 23.06.2008 were filed by the appellant before the ICD, Dadri on various dates of February, 2009 but those had been forwarded by the Superintendent (Refund), ICD-Dadri to the Assistant Commissioner of Customs, Air Cargo Complex, Mumbai on 07.07.2009 as the Bills of Entry pertains to Air Cargo, Customs Commissionerate. Refund claim was rejected on the ground that the same was received at Air Cargo Commissionerate after one year of payment of SAD. Appellant unsuccessfully challenged the same before the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), Mumbai-III that resulted in filing of this appeal. 3. In the memo of appeal and during the course of hearing of the appeal, learned Counsel for the appellant Ms. Lakshmi Menon submitted t....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....in 2017 (349) ELT 236 (Bom.) and Commissioner of Customs, NS-III Vs. DSM Sinochem Pharmaceuticals (I) Pvt. Ltd. as reported in 2018 (359) ELT 509 (Bom.), submitted that limitation period of one year is strictly applicable even in case of refund of SAD for which order passed by the Commissioner (Appeals) needs no interference by this Tribunal. 5. Heard from both sides and gone through the case records as well as judicial decisions cited by the adversaries. The dispute in the present case revolves round the consideration of the applicability of limitation period to the refund application which was filed in another jurisdiction inadvertently within the stipulated time of one year but forwarded almost after five months to the jurisdictional au....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....nciple based on advancing the cause of justice would certainly apply to exclude time taken in prosecuting proceedings which are bona fide and with due diligence pursued ... Therefore, the date of filing of application before the Dadri Commissionerate is to be taken for the purpose of computation of refund claim on SAD. Another aspect which is required to be placed  on record is inaction of the departmental authorities on the said refund application filed in Dadri Commissionerate, for which five months were unnecessarily wasted and had it been the jurisdictional authority, Government of India would have been burdened with payment of interest on late disposal of the refund claim. No finding is available in the order of the Commissioner (....