TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1999 (6) TMI 35
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.... (4) By using the expression 'shall be served' in Section 153 of the Customs Act, has or has not the legislature intended that every notice issued under the Customs Act should be actually served, that is 'given', that is 'be received' by the person for whom it is meant or to whom it has been issued? (5) Does the expression 'sending by registered post' as used in Clause (a) of Section 153 of the Act only indicate the manner of issuance of the notice or does it also prescribe, by implicity obliterating the expression 'shall be served' that there is no need to ensure that the notice has actually been received by the person concerned? (6) Does the combined reading of Sections 110(2), Section 124(a) and Section 153 of the Customs Act mean tha....
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....s authorities that any other mode of service as contemplated in Section 153 of the Act was effected on the writ petitioners on any date prior to the expiry of the period of limitation." 4. It must be stated here that there was already an unreported decision of Ruma Pal, J., dated 11th May, 1993 in C.O. No. 5838(W)/93 wherein the learned Judge upon taking into consideration various decisions cited therein held that issuance of notice would tantamount to giving of the notice for the purpose of Section 110(2) read with Section 153 of the Customs Act. The said decision had not been brought to the notice of the Hon'ble Justice Tarun Chatterjee. 5. The subsequent Division Bench judgment of this Court in F.M.A.T. No. 923 of 1994, Union of India ....
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....l v. Collector of Customs & Ors. reported in 100 C.W.N 429, one of us .(S.B. Sinha, J.), followed the said Division Bench decision reported in 1996 (1) CHN 1 and held :- "In terms of the aforementioned provisions it is the duty of the Customs authorities to show that notice under Clause (a) of sub-section (1) of Section 124 was issued to the owners and failure to issue such notice within six months of seizure of the goods would entitle the owner the return of the goods from whose possession they were seized. Six months times under Section 110 starts from the date of despatch of notice by post. Reference in this connection may be made to Ambali Karthikeyan v. The Collector of Customs & Central Excise & Ors. reported in 1971 Taxation Law Re....