Vessel Asean Explorer Confirmed as Foreign Going Vessel Under Section 87, Maintaining Exemption Status Despite Local Port Operations

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....HC determined that the vessel Asean Explorer qualified as a foreign going vessel under Section 87 of the Customs Act, 1961. The court rejected arguments that the vessel's berthing arrangements at Cochin Port or intermittent cable repair activities in the Indian Ocean negated its foreign going status. The vessel's contractual obligation to be ready for repair operations and its time charter agreement substantiated its classification. The court affirmed the Tribunal's original finding, emphasizing that the vessel satisfies the statutory definition without requiring strained interpretation. Consequently, the vessel remained entitled to the exemption, and the appeal was dismissed.....