TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (8) TMI 657
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....1.1 The said 16 consignments were put on hold by DRI, AZU, Ahmedabad vide their letter dtd. 21.02.2025. Subsequently, consignments were examined by the DRI officers under Panchnamas dtd. 23.02.2025 to 25.02.2025. Samples of each type of fabric were drawn during the examination and the sealed samples were sent to CRCL, Vadodara for testing. 1.2 The DRI vide their letter dtd. 20.03.2025 informed that they received specific information that multiple type of fabrics are imported in the guise of Tarpaulin by Appellant at Kandla SEZ under consignee M/s Cargo Care Agency and that IEC of Appellant is being misused for import of fabric. The imported goods under 16 Bills of Entry lying within the warehouse of M/s. Cargo Care Agency were seized vide seizure memo dtd. 01.04.2025 by Customs, Kandla under reasonable belief that the imported goods were liable to confiscation under Section 111 of the Customs Act, 1962 as the goods were mis-declared to the extent that description mentioned in the bills of entry was "leftover fabrics of tarpaulin of mix size and GSM" whereas imported goods were fabrics rolls of different type (Woven, non-woven, coated with PVC/PU etc.). The Customs arrived at pos....
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....ther extant law, pertaining to goods imported into or services provided within, a Special Economic Zone or Unit, to carry out authorized operations by the Developer or Entrepreneur. This Section is reproduced as under:- "Section 26. (1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), every Developer and the entrepreneur shall be entitled to the following exemptions, drawbacks and concessions, namely: - (a) exemption from any duty of customs, under the Customs Act, 1962 or the Custom Tariff Act, 1975 or any other law for the time being in force, on goods imported into, or service provided in, a Special Economic Zone or a Unit, to carry on the authorised operations by the Developer or entrepreneur; (b) exemption from any duty of customs, under the Customs Act, 1962 or the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 or any other law for the time being in force, on goods exported from, or services provided, from a Special Economic Zone or from a Unit, to any place outside India: (c) ......... (d) ........... (e) ........... (f) ........... (g) .......... (2) The Central Government may prescribe the manner in which, and the ter....
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.... of the consignee. The remaining test reports were also received by 28.04.2025. 3.2 On the basis of subject test reports, calculation in 12 Bills of Entry could be worked out and communicated to party and consignee while calculation in respect of remaining 04 Bills of Entry could not be worked out as there were multiple types of fabric rolls and duty calculation was required type wise weight and value of the fabric rolls. It was also conveyed that some of the goods were "prohibited in nature (Minimum Import Price applicable vide Notification No. 77/2023 dated 16.03.2024)". While giving Personal Hearing on 28.04.2025, a request was made to the importer to submit copies of commercial invoices, packing list, assessed copies of Bills of Entry, agreement between importer and their supplier and purchase order from potential buyers in case of the subject 16 Bills of Entry wherein provisional release was sought. Till date of subject order, no documents except for copies of Bills of Entry and Commercial Invoices were provided. 3.3 Personal Hearings were offered on 28.04.2025, 05.05.2025/06.05.2025 but they did not attend and preferred to make their submissions vide letters dated 06.03....
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.... in respect of others, details are still awaited. * The search under Panchnama (copy submitted at Page 10 to 13 of submission made on 08.07.2025) at the Registered Office premises of the importer M/s. H. R. Enterprises at Room No. 4, B-13, New Chawl, Siddharth Colony, Chembur West revealed that the premises, which was a room in a chawl, was owned by one Shri Ravindra Bapu Jadhav. He and other family members viz. Ms. Mrunali Ravindra Jadhav and Shri Pranay Ravindra Jadhav, present at the premises at the start of the search informed that they were not aware about any firm in the name M/s. H. R. Enterprises or any import business. * Thereafter, one Ms. Harshali Ravindra Jadhav entered the premises and introduced herself as the Director of M/s. H.R. Enterprises. She informed that one Shri Hari Shethiya had taken her documents to start a company for import of fabrics and he only looks after the entire operations of the company. That no business was carried out from the said premises and no documents were available with her. She also informed that she used to receive Rs. 2000/- to Rs. 2500/- per container in return and did not know anything much about the business.The s....
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....her looking at the minimum import price as is stipulated under tariff or import related legislations or it has done its calculation on the basis of specific rate of duty. Only in couple of cases, it has gone by the transaction value, where the charge is based on classification arrived at by the Department as anti- dumping duty was additionally imposable. It therefore, will be only through the ultimate tests of the imported goods, that seizure may finally get sustained or overruled during adjudication. Investigation therefore, at the stage is half baked as the department is in process of filling the gaps by recording statements relevant to the investigation. 4.1 We find that the appellant has raised certain issues, about jurisdiction of the officers to exercise powers once goods have moved to SEZ which is considered de-jure as a territory outside India and has relied on case law to support point of jurisdiction to check legitimacy of imports and also whether any question of duty liability arises when the goods are not cleared from SEZ to DTA. We find that all these questions about jurisdiction or legitimacy of imports and question of dutability prior to clearance in DTA can be co....
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....f duty and additionally penalty as may be adjudged are routinely demanded and the goods are not allowed to be released by imposition of difficult to meet conditions for release. Purpose and objective of Section 110 A is to allow release of goods before they get damaged or destroyed rather than to recover yet to be ascertained duties and yet to be imposed penalties and thereby, not allowing the goods to get released. Since, there is no detailed appreciation required to be done at the stage of provisional release of goods, of all evidences that have been brought on record or may be brought on record, later, hence proceedings of the provisional release assume the role of creating balance between the interest of the Department and the party. The conditions should be such that these can meet the conflicting interests of Revenue & the person seeking release. Thereby, revenue can get to secure itself to a reasonable extent in case goods are later not available and the party is assured that the conditions are not onerous so as not to allow itself to take the release, as has been provided in the statute. The Adjudicating Authority has to equally understand that allowing the goods to deterio....
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....we are not particularly looking at the process of investigation for collating various evidences by the Department or various decisions on SEZ as contended by the party. We have given sufficient time to both the sides to seek comments and deliberate the issue. We find that on one side we have to "safeguard revenue of the department", which does not mean that at this stage we have to secure every penny that the department may allege against the appellant as Department has sufficient powers under the Customs Act, 1962 and other allied statues to recover, punish, prosecute or even take action if offender is found habitual. Therefore, purpose of provisional release cannot be to secure every penny of likely duty of the revenue through the goods only and/or to become obsessed by such notion, so as to allow the goods to rot to the loss of every party involved in the litigation. We therefore, in this case and in the peculiar facts of the matter, where goods are in the SEZ direct as follows:- (1) We direct the importer to join the investigation for its expeditious completion. Though, we are not giving any time bound direction in this matter as discretion is available with the invest....