2019 (10) TMI 897

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....ed by Commissioner (Appeals) Customs, CGST and Central Excise, Lucknow. 2. Brief facts of the case are that Shri Anil Kumar Gupta was owner of the firm M/s T.D. Forex, Varanasi, and was engaged in the business of foreign exchange and used to arrange foreign currency to its customers as per their demands. The firm M/s T.D. Forex had obtained license from M/s Ambay Forex situated at Heera Market Luxa Varanasa. M/s Ambay Forex was having license from Reserve Bank of India to work as a full fledged money changer. M/s T.D. Forex, Varanasi was licensed as a restricted money changer. Shri Anil Kumar Gupta owner of M/s T.D. Forex was travelling by Chevrolet Beat car bearing registration No.UP65BH2786 on 28.06.2013. He was intercepted at 6:00 p.m. ....

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....import into India of currency and currency notes and Para-8 of the said notification specifies the regulation regarding export and import of currency to and from Nepal and Bhutan and as per said para, a person can taken out of India to Nepal or bring into India from Nepal currency notes being the currency of Nepal. He has further informed that the said settled position of law does not lay down any restriction in respect of import and export of Nepalese currency and Customs Authorities do not have any purview in the matter. Revenue investigated the matter further and from the books account of M/s T.D. Forex came to know that just a little earlier than the said interception M/s T.D. Forex had withdrawn Indian currency of around Rs. 31,00,000/....

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....efore, all the appellants are before this Tribunal. 3. Heard Shri Nishant Mishra learned advocate appearing on behalf of all the three appellants. He has submitted that as per notification No. FEMA 6/ RB-2000 dated 03.05.2000 issued by Reserve Bank of India and as provided by Para-8 of the said notification any person can bring into India-Nepalese currency without any restriction. He has further submitted that appellant M/s T.D. Forex was in the business of money changer with valid license for doing the same. They were engaged in arranging foreign exchange to their clients and possession of foreign exchange by them particularly Nepalese currency was as provided by the law. Therefore, there was no violation on the part of the appellant to p....

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....t were in Nepalese currency. Therefore the said confiscation is not tenable in law. He has relied upon precedent decision of this Tribunal in the case of Ram Chandra Vs. Commissioner of Customs reported as 1992 (60) ELT 277 (Tri.) and Ram Avtar Goel Vs. Commissioner of Customs, New Delhi reported as 2003 (159) ELT 935 (Tri-Del). He has submitted that it was held by this Tribunal in the case of Ram Chandra (supra) that before violation of section 121 of Customs Act is established the ingredients that must be satisfied are that there must be a sale, the sale must be of smuggled goods, the sale must be by person having knowledge or reason to believe that the goods were of smuggled origin and seller, purchaser and quantity of smuggled goods sol....