AI Drafter 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (10) TMI 271
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....been imported under Bill of Entry No. 9037350 dated 09 June 2022 and Bill of Entry No. 9038081 of the same date, aggrieved by the fact that the said consignments had been withheld by the Customs authorities. When the writ petition was initially entertained the Court had noted that the petitioner had been duly granted the requisite import permission by the competent authority in the office of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). During the course of consideration, it came to the fore that although the petitioner's consignment had been duly inspected by the Delhi Police in terms of the statutory obligation placed by Rule 88(5) of the Arms Rules 2016 (the 2016 Rules), certain queries came to be raised and clarifications were sought from the DGFT. The DGFT in turn is stated to have approached the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for providing appropriate clarifications. When the matter was thereafter taken up on 26 July 2022, the Court was informed that MHA had apprised the DGFT that the petitioner had breached the terms and conditions of the import license. Those issues stand duly highlighted in the order of the Court dated 26 July 2022, which is extracted hereinbelow: ....
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....des and 1000 Magazines. The petitioner had contended that as long as it held the requisite import permissions for import of Slides and Frames, there existed no legal impediment which would have justified the retention of those goods. In accordance with the procedure prescribed under the Arms Rules, 2016 ["the 2016 Rules"], the Delhi Police appears to have undertaken an inspection of the consignments which form subject matter of the present writ petition and addressed a communication of 21 June 2022 to the Directorate General of Foreign Trade [DGFT]. It referred to the fact that on inspection it found that the Frames which had been imported had the following additional parts already fitted thereto: - a. Hammer b. Catch magazine, c. Safety lock d. Safety lock support pin, e. Trigger Action Mechanism Part f. Trigger Similarly, in respect of Slides, it pointed out that the said article also had the following parts already fitted in each Slide:- i Firing Pin ii. Spring of firing pin iii. Lock plate of firing Pin iv. Extractor The case of the petitioner is that it....
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.... would not absolve the petitioner from the additional requirement of obtaining the requisite license for import under the 2016 Rules. Notwithstanding the above and since the import permission had been duly granted by the DGFT itself, Mr. Singh submits that the respondents shall consider the grant of that license ex-post facto in order to regularize the consignment which has been duly imported by the petitioner. Mr. Singh has then relied upon the provisions made in Rule 57(4) of the 2016 Rules to contend that the moment parts of arms and ammunition which cannot possibly be manufactured locally are sought to be imported, the importer is duty bound to move the MHA by way of an application which would in turn obtain the opinion of the Department of Defense before granting an authorization for such import. According to Mr. Singh, this procedure too does not appear to have been followed or enforced by the respondents prior to the grant of import permission. The Court notes that presently the question whether the components of arms which stand embedded to the Frame and Slides are of such a character or quality which cannot be manufactured locally is an issue which is yet....
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....ed CGSC, let the competent authorities in the MHA as well as the DGFT jointly consider the issues which stand flagged in this order and place their stand before the Court within a period of two weeks from today. The Court further requests the competent authorities in the DGFT, Customs, the Delhi Police as well as the MHA to attend to the grievance of the petitioner with respect to the thirteen other consignments which are stated to have been detained. For the purposes of enabling the respondents to undertake the aforesaid exercise, the petitioner shall provide the details of the thirteen other consignments which are stated to have been detained forthwith. List again on 15.09.2022." 3. As would be evident from the issues which stood identified in that order, the principal objection which is taken is that the Frames and Slides which have been imported by the petitioner are fitted and integrated with various independent components of a firearm such as trigger, trigger guard, hammer, threaded interfaces etc.. In view of the above and since according to the respondents, the import license stood restricted to a Slide and Frame only, a separate import permission shoul....
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....he petitioner was granted a manufacturing license for firearms and ammunition by MHA on 12 March 2018. That license authorised the petitioner to manufacture shot guns, hand guns, bolt action rifles including double barrel rifle as well as shotgun cartridges and center fire cartridges. It is also stated to have been granted a manufacturing license for air weapons on 3 April 2018. Section 10 of the Arms Act 1959 (the Act) places a prohibition on the import and export of arms or parts thereof except in accordance with a license which may be issued in that respect by the competent authority. Undisputedly, the power to issue a license for import stood conferred on the MHA. By a Notification of 22 May 2018, the MHA delegated its powers to the Secretary in the Government of India, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industries. The aforesaid Notification reads thus: - "MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS NOTIFICATION New Delhi, the 22nd May, 2018 S.O. 2049(E).- In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 43 of the Arms Act, 1959 (54 of 1959), the Central Government hereby directs that the powers and functions exercisable and performed by it under ....
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....as specified in Schedule I of the Arms Rules, 2016. 2. The powers and functions under this notification shall be exercised and performed by the said officers subject to following conditions, namely:- (i) The Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and the Secretary to the Government of India in Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence shall observe the policies and instructions laid down by the Central Government in the Ministry of Home Affairs and shall not enunciate any new policy or issue instructions in relation thereto without the prior consent of the Central Government in the Ministry of Home Affairs; and (ii) The Central Government may revoke such delegation of powers and functions or may itself exercise or perform the powers or functions under the said section, if in its opinion such a course of action is necessary in the public interest. [F.No.V-11026/164/2018-Arms] S.C.L. DAS, Jt. Secy." 9. A reading of the aforesaid Notifications would indicate that while the MHA retained its licensing powers insofar as the manufacture of arms and ammunition was concerned, the power ....
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....em captioned parts of handgun-frame already installed with the operational parts mentioned at Sl. No. 1 (a to f) and the item captioned parts of handgun-slides are already installed with operational parts mentioned at Sl. No. 2 (i to iv). Since the import license indicates import item description only Parts of Handgun-Frame & Parts of Handgun-Slides but the actual item is fitted with the other operational mechanism/parts. It is, therefore, requested that it may please be clarified whether the licensee is entitled to import ''frame & slide" with pre-installed operational parts as mentioned at Sl. No. 1 (a to f) and Sl. No. 2 (i to iv)." 12. The query essentially was whether the license to import Frames and Slides would also permit the petitioner to import pre-installed operational parts as noticed hereinabove. The petitioner is thereafter stated to have placed for the consideration of the respondents, a communication received from the Turkish exporter who confirmed that the Frames supplied integrated necessary parts like trigger, trigger guard, hammer, threaded interfaces etc. Since the consignment was not being released, the petitioner on 30 June 2022 instituted the pres....
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....uns-Frame (b) Parts of Handguns-Slide, etc. 4. From the description of the items above, it is amply clear, by plain reading, that the parts of handgun which are intend to be imported are slides and frames of the handguns. It cannot be interpreted, in its remotest application that the slides will be fitted with other licensable parts, and the same thing applies for the frames. Because, hammer, extractor, slide and frame are stand alone separate parts and components of a handgun, and are licensable for the purpose of manufacturing as well as import under the Arms Rules, 2016. 5. The import authorisation issued by DGF&T as per the documents provided is limited to the import of frames, slides, etc. but does not include hammer, extractor and firing pin. Hence, the said authorisation cannot be interpreted to include the other parts and components which are found by the inspecting authority i.e. Licensing Authority Delhi Police, fitted with the slides and frames imported by the firm. Under the Arms Rules, 2016, hammer, firing pin and extractor are stand alone parts of the handgun, and are licensable for the purpose of manufacturing as well as import. 6.....
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....as on the applicability of the aforesaid provision that elaborate submissions were addressed by the respondents thereafter. However, before proceeding down this line, it would be appropriate to briefly notice the submissions which were addressed by respective parties. 15. The petitioner contends that once DGFT had accorded the requisite permission to import in accordance with the powers so conferred on it in terms of the notification of 01 November 2018, there was no additional requirement for the petitioner to have obtained a separate import license. It was submitted that the power of the MHA to regulate the import and export of arms which stands enshrined in Section 10 of the Act stood duly delegated and conferred upon the DGFT. In view of the above, it was submitted that the petitioner could not be faulted for the respondents having failed to consider the grant of a license additionally in Form X. On a more fundamental plane, it was vehemently argued that there is no justification for the respondents taking the view that the Slides and Frames as imported did not conform to the import permission that was granted. It was submitted that Slides and Frames would clearly fall withi....
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....f inspection it was noticed that Frames and Slides had been imported into the country fitted with various additional and identifiable components of firearms. According to learned counsel, it was in the aforesaid backdrop that further clarification was sought from the DGFT. Learned counsel further apprised the Court that Delhi Police had, in any case, fulfilled the obligations placed upon it in terms of Rule 88(5) of the 2016 Rules and thus it cannot be held liable for any delay in the release of the consignment that may have subsequently occurred. Learned counsel further argued that, in terms of Rule 88(5), the inspecting authority is statutorily obliged to examine whether the articles imported are found to be "corresponding with the import license." According to the said respondent, the clarification which was sought from the DGFT, was justified in law and in discharge of the duty cast upon the inspecting authority. 18. Ms. Raman, learned CGSC appearing for the DGFT, has submitted that both, the Act as well as the 2016 Rules provision for parts and components of firearms distinctively. It was her submission that the definition of a "main fire arm component" as contained in Rule....
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....he very outset, it may be noted that Chapter 9 of the FTP defines an "accessory" or an "attachment" in Para 9.01 to mean a part, sub assembly or assembly that contributes to efficiency or effectiveness of a piece of equipment without changing its basic functions. Under the ITC (HS) 2022, the subject of arms and ammunition, parts and accessories thereof are dealt with in Chapter 93. ITC (HS) Heading 9301 deals with military weapons other than revolvers and pistols. Revolvers and pistols other than those which are set out in ITC (HS) Headings 9303 and 9304 are covered by ITC(HS) Heading 9302. ITC(HS) Heading 9303 covers firearms and similar devices which operate by the firing of an explosive charge and include sporting shot guns, rifles and muzzle loading firearms, pistols and other devices designed to project signal flares, pistols and revolvers for firing blank ammunition and captive bolt humane killers. ITC(HS) Heading 9304 is the residuary entry and deals with other arms such as spring air or gas guns and pistols and truncheons excluding those falling under Heading 9307. 22. Heading 9305 deals with parts and accessories of articles of headings 9301-9304. The petitioner had pla....
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....s been defined in Rule 2(30) as follows: - "(30) "manufacturer" means a person, who manufactures, sells, tests (other than proof-test), exports, imports or transfers or keeps for sale, or test (other than proof-test) firearms, their parts, components or ammunition or arms other than firearms" As would be evident from the aforesaid definition, a manufacturer is defined to mean a person who manufactures and imports firearms, their parts, components or ammunition or arms other than firearms. The expression "manufacturing" is defined in Rule 2(31) as under: - "(31) "manufacturing" means making, producing or assembling: ─ (i) a complete firearm; (ii) a pressure-bearing part or component of a firearm (e.g. barrel, slide, cylinder, bolt, breech lock, firing pin, etc.); (iii) ammunition for firearm; or (iv) an arm other than a firearm, and includes ─ (i) reactivating a deactivated firearm; and (ii) substantially modifying the function of a firearm (e.g. conversion to fully automatic), but does not include ─ (i) repair, restoration, maintenance or cosmetic enhancement or alteration of a fir....
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....in addition to the conditions specified or forming part of the licence in Form VII. (6) The licensee shall store all firearms, their parts, components and/or ammunition manufactured by it as specified in Form VII. (7) The licensee shall permit, and shall cooperate fully with, inspections carried out by the licensing authority (or such other body as may be designated by it) of the licensee's facilities, particularly in respect to the safe and secure storage of firearms and ammunition. (8) The licensee shall immediately notify the licensing authority on occurrence of any theft, loss or unintentional destruction of firearms or ammunition stored at its premises. (9) The licensee shall notify the licensing authority within three working days on occurrence of any of the following events, namely- (i) change of address of its registered office; (ii) change in the directors, in which case the licensee shall provide the licensing authority with the names and addresses of each new director, along with the particulars and documents specified in Rule 53 for directors. (10) The licensee shall ensure that all employees who have ac....
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.... Defence Production by grant of an authorisation for such import in accordance with the procedure for import under these rules." 28. The Court then deems it appropriate to extract Form VII which is in the following format: - "FORM VII Licence for Manufacture Proof Test Manufacture and Proof Test of Firearms/Ammunition UIN...............License Number................ Name, description and business address of licensee Description of firearms allowed to be manufactured Description of ammunition allowed to be manufactured Categories of firearms allowed to be proof tested Name of range or other place where allowed to test Date on which the licence expires Category Annual production (Number) Category Annual production (Number or Weight in Kgs) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 The.... Of 20... Date on which a copy is sent vide Rule 7(2) to - The District Magistrate of.......................district The State Government of .................................. The.......of.............
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....censing authority in his opinion deem fit and shall not arrange for the shipment of the firearm or ammunition prior to the issuance of the import licence. (3) The licensing authority granting the licence shall forthwith send a copy of the licence to the licensing authority having jurisdiction at the port of import. (4) The dealer or manufacturer shall immediately on the arrival of the shipment of firearms or parts of firearms or ammunition in India, notify the licensing authority as well as the licensing authority for the port of entry where the shipment has arrived, in writing of the arrival and provide the particulars of the container or consignment and place where the shipment can be inspected and the importer licensee shall not open the container or the consignment of firearms or ammunition before an inspection is conducted by the licensing authority of the port in presence of the Indian customs authority at the port of entry in India. (5) The dealer or manufacturer shall within seventy-two hours of the arrival of the firearms or ammunition in India, ─ (a) arrange with the licensing authority of the port of entry to (b) on fina....
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.... 93052090 Other Free Import subject to the condition that the requirements specified in the MHA Notification No. S.O. 667(E) dated 12.09.1985 and Notification No. S.O. 831 (E) dated 2.8.2002 are fulfilled and also that the purchaser/user of these items shall obtain requisite user license from the competent authority under the provisions of the existing Arms Act, 1959. 93059100 Other : - Of military weapons of heading 9301 Restricted 93059900 Other : -- Other Restricted" 32. The Court also deems it apposite to notice Clause 3 of The General Rules for the Interpretation of Import Tariff (Tariff Interpretation Rules) which reads thus: - "3. When by application of rule 2(b) or for any other reason, goods are, prima facie, classifiable under two or more headings, classification shall be effected as follows: (a) The heading which provides the most specific description shall be preferred to headings providing a more general description. However, when two or more headings each refer to part only of the materials or substances contained in mixed or composite goods or to part only of the items in a set put up for retail sa....
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....tt stocks and other wooden parts for guns, rifles or carbines and butts and plates (of wood, metal, ebonite, etc.) for revolvers and pistols. (6) Slings, band, piling or stacking and butt swivels and swivel bands for guns, rifles or carbines. (7) Silencers (sound moderators). (8) Removable recoil absorbers for sporting or target shooting guns. The heading excludes: (a) Parts of general use as defined in Note 2 to Section XV (e.g., screws, rivets and springs), of base metal (Section XV), and similar goods of plastics (Chapter 39). (b) Gun cases (heading 42.02). (c) Gun cameras for aircraft (heading 90.07). (d) Telescopic sights and similar sights for arms (heading 90.13). Accessories more specifically covered by other headings of the Nomenclature, such as pull-throughs, cleaning rods and other cleaning tools for arms (headings 82.05, 96.03, etc.)." 34. However, the Court notes that the HS 2016 Edition was amended twice thereafter in 2017 and 2020. The relevant part of Chapter 93 of HS as it stood in 2017 read as follows: - "Heading H.S. Code 93.05 Parts and accessories....
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....FTP, the ITC (HS) the Court then proceeds to deal with the submissions noticed hereinabove. On due consideration of the rival submissions which have been addressed, the principal issue which arises for determination is whether Slides and Frames as imported by the petitioner could be said to fall foul of the import permission which was granted by the DGFT. The principal objection which is taken by the respondents and which was firstly noticed in the communication of the Delhi Police dated 21 June 2022 was with respect to the imported Slides and Frames being fitted with pre-installed operational parts. The objection essentially was that the operational parts which were found to be fitted to the Slides and Frames were liable to viewed as independent components of a firearm and for which a separate import permission was liable to be obtained. This submission was addressed in the backdrop of the definition of "main firearm component" set out in Rule 2(29) and the phrase "parts and components" as defined by Rule 2(37). The respondents also sought to draw sustenance from the Explanation appended to Form VII which, according to them, is an additional indicator of the petitioner being place....
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....st, for the purposes of import, be understood to mean an article which does not have any other component or part of a firearm embedded in them. It must at the outset be noted that the expression "main firearm component" has been defined in Rule 2(29) to "mean" the barrel, frame or receiver, slide, bolt or breach block of a firearm. Rule 2(37) while defining the expression "parts and components" does not independently notice or classify any other part or component of a firearm other than the four components which are also spelt out in Rule 2(29). The Court also bears in mind that Rule 2(37) uses the both the words "mean" and "includes". Both those Rules are therefore liable to be interpreted and understood as being exhaustive. Although it is by now well settled that where a statutory provision uses both the words "means" and "includes", irrespective of whether the two are separated by additional words while attempting to define a word or phrase is liable to be viewed as exhaustive, the Court recalls the succinct enunciation of this principle in P. P. Kasilingam v. P.S.G. College of Technology 1995 Supp (2) SCC 348 where their Lordships of the Supreme Court observed thus:- "....
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....means and includes" in Rule 2(b) would, therefore, suggest that the definition of 'college' is intended to be exhaustive and not extensive and would cover only the educational institutions falling in the categories specified in Rule 2(b) and other educational institutions are not comprehended. Insofar as engineering colleges are concerned, their exclusion may be for the reason that the opening and running of the private engineering colleges are controlled through the Board of Technical Education and Training and the Director of Technical Education in accordance with the directions issued by the AICTE from time to time. As noticed earlier the Grants-in-Aid Code contains provisions which, in many respects, cover the same field as is covered by the Act and the Rules. The Director of Technical Education has been entrusted with the functions of proper implementation of those provisions. There is nothing to show that the said arrangement was not working satisfactorily so as to be replaced by the system sought to be introduced by the Act and the Rules. Rule 2(d), on the other hand, gives an indication that there was no intention to disturb the existing arrangement regarding private engine....
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....h item in processed form" and again for the third time the words used are "and further includes gur, rab, shakkar, khandsari and jaggery". It is a well-settled rule of interpretation that where the legislature uses the words "means" and "includes" such definition is to be given a wider meaning and is not exhaustive or restricted to the items contained or included in such definition. Thus the meaning of "agricultural produce" in the above definition is not restricted to any products of agriculture as specified in the Schedule but also includes such items which come into being in processed form and further includes such items which are called as gur, rab, shakkar, khandsari and jaggery." 82. This statement of the law, as can be seen from the quotation hereinabove, is without citation of any authority. In fact, in Jagir Singh v. State of Bihar [Jagir Singh v. State of Bihar, (1976) 2 SCC 942 : 1976 SCC (Tax) 204] , SCC paras 11 and 19 to 21 and Mahalakshmi Oil Mills v. State of A.P. [Mahalakshmi Oil Mills v. State of A.P., (1989) 1 SCC 164 : 1989 SCC (Tax) 56] , SCC paras 8 and 11 (which has been cited in P. Kasilingam [P. Kasilingam v. PSG College of Technology, 1995 Supp (2....
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....roneously noted that the definition was "inclusive". 43. Before proceeding further, it may be further noted that the Explanation to Form VII additionally notices a Firing Pin, Extractor and a Hammer/Striker as parts of a firearm. However, these components are neither specifically mentioned in Rules 2(29) and 2(37) nor are they liable to be interpreted as included therein in light of the exhaustive character of those two provisions. The additional components which are chronicled in Form VII could at best be said to fall in the definition of the word "manufacturing" as set out in Rule 2(31) which significantly while defining components of a firearm uses the expressions "e.g." and "etc.". The submission of the respondents pivoting upon the Explanation to Form VII and on the basis whereof it was argued that since other components of a firearm are separately noted and classified alongside a Slide and Frame, it must consequently be held that the expression Frame or Slide would have to be understood to mean one which has no other pre-installed operational parts also lacks merit for the following reasons. 44. Firstly, the aforesaid submission must necessarily be considered and eva....
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....ule 88(2) while dealing with the subject of import requires Form X to be obtained by a person who seeks to import into India a firearm or "parts of firearms". The expression "parts of firearms" would necessarily have to draw colour from Rule 2(29) and 2(37). The Court is thus of the firm view that merely because some of the albeit well-recognised and accepted parts or components of a firearm are independently noticed in Rule 2(31) and which pertains to the activity of manufacture of firearms, it would be unsound to import its provisions for the purposes of interpreting the phrase "parts of firearms" when sought to be imported. In any case, as this Court views Rules 2(29) and 2(37) read with the other relevant provisions of the Act and the 2016 Rules, it finds itself unable to countenance the submission that a Frame or a Slide must be understood to mean a component of a firearm which should not or cannot be pre-fitted with other parts thereof. 47. The correctness of the objection taken by the respondents may then be tested against the backdrop of the provisions made in the FTP, the ITC (HS) and the HS. It becomes relevant to note that the expression accessory or attachment has be....
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.... is in tune with the ITC(HS). Similarly, the HS Interpretation Rules embody principles identical to those contained in the Tariff Interpretation Rules and do not carry the case of the respondents any further. 49. The Court then deems it relevant to observe that the respondents failed to place for its consideration any material or industry literature which may have indicated or lent credence to their submission that a Frame or a Slide of a firearm is normally or popularly understood to be components which are otherwise not fitted with a sub-part or a popularly identifiable component of a firearm. The Court has already found that neither the provisions contained in the FTP, the ITC (HS) nor the 2016 Rules ordain or can be interpreted to mean that a Frame or Slide should not contain an additional component or part of a firearm. The Court recalls the well- established principle of interpretation that where a doubt arises with respect to tariff entries, words and entries appearing therein are to be understood in the sense that the trade, public or consumer construes them. Entries in a tariff schedule, as per the aforesaid principle, which has now come to be popularly termed as the "c....
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....ical point of view but as understood in common parlance. It has not been defined in the Act and being a word of everyday use it must be construed in its popular sense meaning 'that sense which people conversant with the subject- matter with which the statute is dealing would attribute to it'." 23. In CST v. Jaswant Singh Charan Singh [AIR 1967 SC 1454 : (1967) 2 SCR 720], the Court had to decide whether "charcoal" could be classified as "coal" under Schedule II Part III Entry I of the Madhya Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1958. Answering the question in the affirmative, it was observed as follows: (AIR pp. 1456-57, paras 4 & 6) "4. Now, there can be no dispute that while coal is technically understood as a mineral product, charcoal is manufactured by human agency from products like wood and other things. But it is now well settled that while interpreting items in statutes like the Sales Tax Acts, resort should be had not to the scientific or the technical meaning of such terms but to their popular meaning or the meaning attached to them by those dealing in them, that is to say, to their commercial sense. ... *** 6. The result emerging from the....
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....settled is that those words and expressions should be construed in the sense in which they are understood in the trade, by the dealer and the consumer. The reason is that it is they who are concerned with it and, it is the sense in which they understand it which constitutes the definitive index of the legislative intention." 27. In CCE v. Krishna Carbon Paper Co. [(1989) 1 SCC 150 : 1989 SCC (Tax) 42] this Court has opined thus: (SCC pp. 158-59, para 12) "12. It is a well-settled principle of construction, as mentioned before, that where the word has a scientific or technical meaning and also an ordinary meaning according to common parlance, it is in the latter sense that in a taxing statute the word must be held to have been used, unless contrary intention is clearly expressed by the legislature. ... But there is a word of caution that has to be borne in mind in this connection, the words must be understood in popular sense, that is to say, these must be confined to the words used in a particular statute and then if in respect of that particular items, as artificial definition is given in the sense that a special meaning is attached to particular words in the sta....
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....cribed as "operational parts" are neither classified as a main firearm component nor as parts and components under Rules 2(29) and 2(37) of the 2016 Rules. Both the aforenoted provisions, exhaustively specify the components which are to be recognised as parts of firearms for the purposes of the Act and the 2016 Rules. While Rule 2(31) mentions certain parts of firearms by way of exemplars and stops short of comprehensively specifying all possible components of a firearm, that clearly has no role to play in case of imports and stands confined to the activity of manufacture of firearms. 52. The submissions based on Forms VII and X would also not sustain the impugned action since the former again relates to the manufacture of firearms. The Court has already noticed that under the scheme of the Act and the 2016 Rules, it is permissible for a manufacturer to either produce a complete firearm or any part or component thereof. It is in the aforesaid light that relevant provisions have been incorporated in Form VII and thus call upon a prospective licensee to disclose whether it proposes to manufacture a complete firearm or merely a component thereof. The Court has also found that Form ....
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....rt or component being entitled to be viewed as a separate and distinct component for the purposes of interpretation and understanding its provisions. The view as taken, in any case, clearly falters in light of the provisions made in Rules 2(30) and 2(31) which, as was noticed above, clearly contemplate a contingency where a manufacturer may be engaged in the making or producing a complete firearm or merely a component thereof. In any case the MHA has clearly failed to notice that both Rules 2(29) and 2(37) are exhaustive and must be interpreted and understood accordingly. 56. The MHA then proceeds to record that the declarations which were made by the petitioner here while seeking permission to import Slides and Frames cannot be said to encompass the import of other licensable parts. The aforesaid opinion as expressed is also clearly rendered unsustainable since the petitioner did hold a license for manufacture of a complete firearm. Before this Court it was conceded on behalf of the respondents that if the manufacturer had been granted a license to manufacture a complete firearm it was not placed under any additional statutory obligation to obtain separate licenses for manufact....
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....case that the Act and the 2016 Rules permit the import of only such arms or parts thereof which cannot be manufactured locally. Although the MHA in its advisory has alluded to Rule 57(4), it has not taken the stand that the Act and the 2016 permit import of only such parts of arms which are not being manufactured locally. As this Court views Rule 57(4) it appears to place an obligation upon an importer to obtain the requisite permission of the MHA only in a case where the article proposed to be imported is one which is either not being manufactured or possible to be manufactured locally. The Court thus finds itself unable to conversely read or interpret Rule 57(4) as prohibiting the import of arms or parts thereof which can be manufactured locally, a view which was commended for acceptance by Mr. Endlaw, learned counsel for the Intervener only. 59. The acceptance of the interpretation to Rule 57(4) as advocated by Mr. Endlaw would not only run contrary to the scheme of the Act but also the FTP as would be clear from the reasons which are recorded hereinafter. Firstly, and when tested on the anvil of the Act and the 2016 Rules, the Court notes that Section 10 of the Act read with....
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....technology provider is availing benefits under the foreign trade policy or is dealing with specified services or specified technologies." 61. Turning then to the provisions contained in Chapter 9 of the FTP, the Court notes that the expressions "free", "prohibited" and "restricted" are defined as under: - 9.23. "Free" as appearing in context of import/export policy for items means goods which do not need any 'Authorisation'/ License or permission for being imported into the country or exported out. 9.41. "Prohibited" indicates the import/export policy of an item, as appearing in ITC (HS) or elsewhere, whose import or export is not permitted. 9.47. "Restricted" is a term indicating the import or export policy of an item, which can be imported into the country or exported outside, only after obtaining an Authorisation from the offices of DGFT. 62. As would be evident from the definition of the word "restricted" as extracted above, it is a term used to indicate that the import or export of an item is permitted subject only to an authorisation being obtained from the offices of the DGFT. The ITC(HS) and more particularly Heading 9305 in unequivocal term....
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....m or the facility which is required to be regulated in the interest of all concerned, whereas 'prohibition' obstructs or shuts off, or denies it to those to whom it is applied. Oxford English Dictionary does not define 'regulate' to include prohibition so that if it had been the intention to prohibit the supply, distribution, consumption or use of energy, the legislature would not have contended itself with the use of the word 'regulating' without using the word 'prohibiting' or some such word, to bring out that effect." Viewed in the context of the relevant statutory provisions governing the import of parts of firearms, the 1992 Act, the FTP and the ITC(HS), this Court finds itself unable to hold that the restrictive regime relating to import of firearms comprehends a prohibition in respect of items which are being manufactured locally. 63. Before concluding, the Court also deems it necessary to dispose of two minor issues which came to be raised. The respondents had urged that the requirement of obtaining a license under Form X is a stipulation which continues to apply notwithstanding the import permission granted by the DGFT. This submission was made in light of the conten....