AI Drafter 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (5) TMI 1531
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....taken up together for discussion and decision vide this order. The details of Bills-of-Entry and differential duty are given herein below: S. No. Bill of Entry No. & Date Differential duty (Rs.) 1 2042960 dt. 27.07.2015 106121 2 2069165 dt. 29.07.2015 91016 3 2042525 dt. 27.07.2015 35886 4 2017129 dt. 24.07.2015 170430 5 2052442 dt. 28.07.2015 201054 6 2043020 dt. 27.07.2015 153365 2. Briefly stated facts of the case are that the appellant had imported Light Melting Scrap Bundles and Heavy Melting Scrap ('the impugned goods') and filed the Bills-of-Entry for seeking clearance of the impugned goods imported from Singapore. The appellant self assessed the duty leviable on the impugned goods and paid duty accordingly. However, the Assessing Authority found the declared value to be significantly lower compared to the contemporaneous value available in NIBD data. A query was raised in the EDI System wherein the appellant was asked to explain the lower price of the impugned goods. The appellant did not provide any satisfactory reply to the query and rather mentioned in the EDI System that they were willing to pay the....
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.... 8. We find that in the present case, when the Bills-of entry were assessed, the Assessing Officer sought to enhance the values which were accepted by the appellant-importer and enhanced duty was paid and the goods were cleared. But thereafter, the appellant-importer challenged the enhancement being violative of the provisions of Customs Valuation Rules/Act made thereunder. 9. Further, we find that the appellant had accepted the enhanced duty and paid the same out of compulsion to clear their goods, but accepting the same, will not debar the appellant to challenge the same by filing the appeal. There is no estoppel in law and the appellant is entitled to challenge the enhancement of assessable value by way of filing the appeal. This issue has been considered in various cases by the Tribunal/High Courts/Supreme Court. 10. Further, we find that the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi, in a bunch of appeals, has considered the identical issue in detail after considering the various judgments of the Tribunal as well as of the Supreme Court. After considering all the judgments, the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi in the case of Niraj Silk Mills Vs. Commr of Customs (ICD) Patpargan....
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.... endorsed by the proper officer, would be deemed to have been duly assessed. This clearly flows from the manner in which the word 'assessment' has been defined in Section 2(2) of the Act and is in any case, an issue that is no longer res integra, bearing in mind the decision of the Supreme Court rendered in the matter of ITC Ltd. vs. CCE - (2019) 17 SCC 46. ......... ....... 71. On an overall consideration of the statutory scheme governing the valuation of imports and reassessment, it becomes clear that the reasonable doubt which is spoken of in Rule 12 is indelibly connected to the aspect of the valuation of imported goods and the identification of the transaction value which is spoken of in Section 14. Section 14 introduces a deeming fiction when it provides that the value of the imported goods "shall be the transaction value" and which is ordained to be the price actually paid or is payable for the goods when sold. The 2007 Rules themselves owe their genesis to the identification of transaction value and which subject is principally regulated by Section 14 of the Act. ...... ...... 75. The imperative of reasons being recorded....
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....the exchange of communications amounted to a waiver or abandonment not just of the right to question and assail the reassessment but to impugn it in further proceedings in accordance with the procedure prescribed under the Act. 85. In our considered opinion, the perceived concession made in respect of the opinion harboured by the proper officer cannot possibly be interpreted or construed as detracting from or depriving the importer of the right to question the decision of the proper officer in accordance with law. The right to question the correctness of the decision of the proper officer, be it with respect to the formation of opinion or even on merits, is one which is protected by statute. The question, which as a sequitur, arises is whether that right itself can be said to have been abandoned. ....... ...... 89. The question of abandonment arose for consideration again before a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in Bhau Ram vs. Baij Nath Singh - 1961 SCC OnLine SC 292. The issue itself arose in light of the stand of the respondents that the appellants upon withdrawing the pre-emption price would be deemed to have accepted the decree and t....
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....e of NIDB data as the sole basis for re-determining transaction values. It is pertinent to note that Rule 10A of the Customs Valuation (Determination of Price of Imported Goods) Rules, 1988, as analysed by the CESTAT in this decision, was similar to Rule 12 of the 2007 Rules. The CESTAT ruled in favour of the appellant, holding that NIDB data alone would be insufficient for value reassessment without corroborative evidence or contemporaneous import comparisons. This decision underscored the importance of comprehensive evidence and procedural compliance in customs disputes, cautioning against arbitrary reliance on NIDB data. 104. It becomes apparent from a reading of these decisions collectively that the Tribunal has consistently found that a valuation addition based solely on NIDB data would wholly unwarranted and that any such reassessment would have to be shored by independent and cogent evidence. The legal position so articulated would ensure fairness and transparency in the determination of import values. The body of precedent noticed above have in unison held that mere reliance on external data without corroborative evidence or clear justification would fail to meet t....