TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2008 (12) TMI 201
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....have been issued by M/s. Moody International Certification, Iran, which was not specified agency in the Appendix-28 of Handbook of Procedures (Vol.1) of the Foreign Trade Policy - 2004-09, the said consignment was examined. It was seen that out of the total number of containers, a few containers contained war material, which was restricted/prohibited item for import as per Foreign Trade Policy. Accordingly, proceedings were initiated against the appellant for confiscation of the said war material scrap as also the other scraps alleged to have been used for concealing the war materials scrap. Vide his impugned orders, Commissioner has absolutely confiscated the explosive materials/war material along with confiscation of the remaining scrap p....
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.... above reasoning as contained in relevant paragraphs of the Commissioner's order is reproduced below:- "............... ................ Further, in this case it is found that the importer has not submitted valid Pre-shipment Inspection Certificate as prescribed vide para 2.32 of the Handbook of Procedures (Vol. I) of the Foreign Trade Policy - 2004-09 stipulating that the consignment does not contain any type of arms, ammunition, mines, shells, cartridges, radio active contaminated, or any other explosive material in any form either used or otherwise. In the instant case, the importer has produced the Pre-shipment Inspection Certificate No. MI/06-93/04 dt. 24-10-2004 issued by Moody International, Iran. The Moody International Certifica....
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....nd notified agency, should have not registered their Iran Branch Office with DGFT in light of the said Circular No. 19/2004-09 dt. 18-2-2005 and consequently on being registered, the Iran Branch office i.e. the performing office in this case, may issue such Pre-shipment Inspection Certificate in token of having carried out the Pre-shipment Inspection as required under the provisions of Para 2.32 of the Handbook of Procedures (Vol.1) of the Foreign Trade Policy - 2004-09. Therefore, in this case, as clarified by the DGFT vide circular No.19/2004-09 dt. 18-2-2005 that only if the registered office of the agency specified in Appendix - 28 to the Handbook of Procedures (Vol. I) of the Foreign Trade Policy - 2004-09, gives an undertaking that th....
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....ar from the above reproduction that the requirement of registration of branch offices was clarified by DGFT on 25-1-2005 i.e. much after the import of the goods in question. Circular to that effect was issued by DGFT on 18-2-2005. As such, the appellants who have already imported the goods in January, 2005 along with a pre-inspection certificate issued by Iran Branch office of M/s. Moody International cannot be held to be at fault, for producing such pre-shipment certificate so as to confiscate the scrap (which containers admittedly did not have any war material in them), for the above reason. We therefore find no justification in confiscation of the containers which contained only the declared goods without any war material, or for imposit....