TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (7) TMI 579
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....quor should not be seized, by exercising power under the Goa Excise Duty Act, 1964. The show cause notice came to be issued in the background that the Excise Official at Excise Check-Post, Patradevi, Pernem Goa, detained the vehicle carrying assignment as per the tax invoice Nos.36 and 40 dated 30.04.2025 of different brands (foreign liquor) issued in favour of M/s Discovery Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Gurugram (West), Haryana to be supplied to M/s Vallina Ventures Private Limited Goa (petitioner), Alto Pilerne, Betim, Bardez Goa. Since the inspection was carried out by the Enforcement Cell of the office of the Commissioner of Excise of the premises where the business was being run by the petitioner and no liquor or excisable goods were found, and on the vehicle being seized and the driver having failed to produce valid document from the Excise Department of Goa justifying the import of liquor goods, a case was booked against the driver for illegal possession and transportation of liquor without any valid permit/documents thereby violating the provisions of Sections 4, 5, 8, 15, 12, 13 and 13A read with Rule 16 and 19 of the Goa Excise Duty Act and Rules, 1964 and the liquor/goods and ....
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....s the contention of the petitioner that the transfer was carried out strictly in accordance with Regulation 3 of the Warehoused Goods (Removal) Regulations, 2016 framed under Sections 67 and 69 of the Customs Act and therefore, the transfer of foreign liquor by the petitioner was purely governed by the procedure prescribed under the Customs Act, Rules and Regulation formulated thereunder. 4. In this background, it is the contention of the learned counsel that the exercise undertaken by the Excise Department by detaining the vehicle of the petitioner at the Excise check-post is grossly illegal. In any case, he would submit that even the letter dated 07.05.2025, from the office of the Excise mention that the vehicle was sealed and there existed a Form of transfer of goods from a warehouse issued by the Superintendent of Customs, ICD GarhiHarsaru, Gurugram and permission was sought to break the seal of the vehicle. According to him, the petitioner had purchased the foreign liquor as a custom bond to bond transfer, as it possesses the license for import and export and therefore the exercise undertaken by the Excise Department is mala fide and illegal. Not only this, he would subm....
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....d purchased the foreign liquor from M/s Discovery Beverages Pvt. Ltd., through two invoices being furnished. However, in absence of any document, there was no reason for the respondents to believe that the petitioner had obtained approval for transfer of foreign liquor from Deputy Commissioner of Customs, ICD Garhi Harsaru, Gurugram and the Superintendent of Customs (Bond), under Section 59 of the Page 7 of 22 3rd July 2025 Customs Act, and therefore, in absence of any documents, it is denied by the respondent that the transfer was carried out in accordance with the Regulation 3 of the Warehoused Goods (Removal) Regulations, 2016. It is the specific contention of Mr Salkar that the petitioner has not obtained any import permit for importing the foreign liquor within the State of Goa as per the provisions of Section 4(2) of the Goa Excise Duty Act as well as Rules 1964. It is further submitted that since when the Sub-Inspector, Incharge of Excise Check Post at Patradevi, Pernem, on 06.05.2025, detained the truck carrying a consignment of foreign liquor, it was not brought to the notice of the officer that the transport of liquor was duly approved by the Deputy Commissioner of Cus....
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....uance of show cause notice by the authorities. In such a case, the parties get ample opportunity to put forth their contentions before the authorities concerned and to satisfy the authorities concerned about the absence of case for proceeding against the person against whom the show cause notices have been issued. Abstinence from interference at the stage of issuance of show cause notice in order to relegate the parties to the proceedings before the authorities concerned is the normal rule. However, the said rule is not without exceptions. Where a show cause notice is issued either without jurisdiction or in an abuse of process of law, certainly in that case, the writ court would not hesitate to interfere even at the stage of issuance of show cause notice. The interference at the show cause notice stage should be rare and not in a routine manner. Mere assertion by the writ petitioner that notice was without jurisdiction and/or abuse of process of law would not suffice. It should be prima facie established to be so. Where factual adjudication would be necessary, interference is ruled out." 9. Similarly, in Kaikhosrou (Chick) Kavasji Framji Vs Union of India and another (2019) 20 ....
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....y be prescribed. (3) Where any warehoused goods are removed in contravention of section 71, the licensee shall be liable to pay duty, interest, fine and penalties without prejudice to any other action that may be taken against him under this Act or any other law for the time being in force. 12. The petitioner's company was legally entitled to purchase foreign liquor as per customs bonded warehouse to custom bonded warehouse transfer in the wake of the license granted to it by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the form of importer-exporter code, and it was a valid license. As part of its business, the petitioner then secured a space availability certificate for storing its goods in godown of M/s Nineteenth Century Spirits Pvt. Ltd. situated at Alto Pilerne, Bardez Goa, which is a public bonded warehouse, identified by the Superintendent of Customs (Bond), Goa and a declaration was issued that there was sufficient space available to deposit the goods allotted to the petitioner. Thereafter, in terms of Regulation 3 of the Warehoused Goods (Removal) Regulations, 2016, which is formulated in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 157 read with Sections 60, 67....
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....cisable article in Section 2(ff) which reads thus :- "(ff) "excisable article" means- (i) Liquor, other than foreign liquor, (ii) Intoxicating drug, or (iii) opium, [(iv) foreign liquor] but does not include any medicinal and toilet preparations containing alcohol, opium, Indian hemp and other narcotic drugs and narcotics;]" 15. The word 'import' is also assigned a definite meaning to convey bringing into the State from the rest of India or any place outside India. There is also a definition of 'liquor' in Section 2(1) to mean (a) spirits of wine, methylated or denatured spirits, spirits, wines, toddy, beer, [feni] and all liquids consisting of or containing alcohol, wash, other than medicinal and toilet preparations. Section 4 of the Act of 1964 is a provision relating to excisable articles and it reads thus :- "4. Import of excisable articles.- (1) No [excisable article] shall be brought into the State from the rest of India or a place outside India except on the authority of a permit issued by the Commissioner indicating that the duty or fee, if any, imposed by or under this Act has been paid or....
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....tions made thereunder and to pay on or before the date specified in the notice of demand and all duties and interest payable under sub section (2) of Section 61 i.e. the period for which goods remain in warehouse. The petitioner executed such consignment bond, declaring itself to be 'importer' and binding himself in the sum set out therein, upon having been filed a bill of entry of warehouse under Section 46 of the Customs Act in respect of the goods mentioned in the bond which has been assessed to duty under Section 17 or 18. The said bond is annexed to the petition at page 80 dated 16.04.2025, signed on behalf of Vallina Ventures Pvt. Ltd., and is clearly compliant with the requirements in Section 59 read with Section 61 of the Customs Act. In the light of the aforesaid procedure having been adopted for bringing the warehouse goods by executing a warehousing bond, in our considered opinion, the Excise Department has erred in exercising its jurisdiction in respect of the said goods on the premise that they have been imported and therefore, must be subjected to excise duty. 18. In Garden Silk Mills Ltd. (supra), where the appellant had imported goods from abroad and t....