TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (6) TMI 1279
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....rica, merely on ground of having been transacted with related party, and limited only to four consignments, cleared against bills of entry no. 766487/29.07.2010, no. 808236/27.08.2010, no. 804018/25.08.2010 and no. 855986/22.09.2010, was upheld in order [ order-in-appeal no. 216/MCH/ADC/SVB/2013 dated 18th March 2013 ] of Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), Mumbai - I without considering their submissions. 2. We have heard Learned Counsel and Learned Authorized Representative. It is common ground that the imported goods were intended for free supply during the Commonwealth Games 2010 at New Delhi and that the order impugned before the first appellate authority was direction, containing several stipulations and caveats, to the assessing grou....
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....rgeable on any goods by reference to their value, the value of such goods shall be deemed to be - (a) the price at which such or like goods are ordinarily sold, or offered for sale, for delivery at the time and place of importation or exportation, as the case may be, in the course of international trade, where the seller and the buyer have no interest in the business of each other and the price is the sole consideration for sale; (b) where such price is not ascertainable, the nearest ascertainable equivalent thereof determined in accordance with the rules made in this behalf .........' of Customs Act, 1962 governed determination of assessable value with recourse to Customs Valuation Rules, 1963 and rule 3 therein having permutations....
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....mmunication systems with little transnational interface, mostly manual functioning and limited staffing, existence of a specialized establishment, for undertaking scrutiny of transactions among related persons or where value of services was to be determined, is attractive. Availability of information at their fingertips or 'work desks' eliminated that supplement but it's continuance could only have been of assistance in assessment. We emphasize particularly on assistance because the 'proper officer' must reign influenced if assessment is to responsible and responsive. Though Special Valuation Branch (SVB) may advise and recommend, any direction or mandate to assess in a particular way or to issue notice for recovery is anathema to adjudicat....
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....be quashed in appeal filed on behalf of the jurisdictional Commissioner of Customs who had proceeded in the manner permitted in section 129D (2) of Customs Act, 1962 and presumably on the supposition that the official in the Special Valuation Branch (SVB) had undertaken adjudicatory function vested in 'proper officer' intended by section 17 or section 18 of Customs Act, 1962. The finding of the first appellate authority, who ordered the addition of royalty of 3% and 5% of the selling price along with the lumpsum fees of ¥ 14,000,000, is cause of grievance to the appellant. 13. We have heard Learned Counsel for appellant and Learned Authorized Representative at length. It is on record that neither of them were in a position to apprise ....
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....edures for providing expert consultation to the statutorily empowered assessing officers, even if of long standing existence, do not vest the institution, established by executive fiat for such purpose, with the same statutory empowerment; notwithstanding, the arrogation of direction, one way or the other, by the Deputy Commissioner, Special Valuation Branch (SVB), its recommendatory character cannot be elevated to that of an order in the absence of statutory support. In keeping with the tentativeness of the findings of this internal advisory mechanism, assessments, guided by the findings, are retained as provisional, under section 18 of Customs Act, 1962, till finalization on a future date. It is that potential as a trigger for resort to p....
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....ed arise, by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. In other words, the internal process of the customs administration that enables the proper officer, under section 17or section 18 of the Customs Act, 1962, to be assisted in the discharge of the statutory obligation and, which, legally, may not even bind the proper officer does not merit our attention. To the extent that we accord approval or disapproval at this stage, we would be appropriating the exercise of powers under section 18 of Customs Act 1962 for finalization of the assessment to ourselves and, thereby, would also erase one level of remedial jurisdiction that would, otherwise, be available to either side. This, in our view, is not the intent of section 129A of Customs Act, 1962. Therefore, ....