TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (9) TMI 360
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....Section 110(2) of the Act. 2. Through the present Petition, the Petitioner seeks release of nine gold bars and one gold chain weighing approximately 172 grams, which were detained by the Customs authorities on 26.02.2025 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi. FACTUAL MATRIX 3. In order to appreciate the controversy involved in the present Petition, the relevant facts, in brief, are required to be noticed. 4. The Petitioner arrived at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, from Jeddah on 26.02.2025 by Flight No. SV 756. He opted for the Green Channel. After crossing the Green Channel, he was intercepted by the Customs authorities. During X-ray examination of his baggage, nine yellow metal bars and one chain of yellow metal, appearing to be gold, were recovered. The goods were detained vide Detention Receipt No. 36069 dated 26.02.2025. The total weight of the recovered goods was stated to be approximately 172 grams. 5. On 26.02.2025, the Customs authorities also recorded a document which the Respondent relies upon as the statement of the Petitioner under Section 108 of the Act. According to the Respondent, the Petitioner stated that the rec....
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....lid. The Petitioner, therefore, contends that the continued detention of the goods thereafter was impermissible in law. During the pendency of the present Petition, however, the Respondent issued the aforesaid Show Cause Notice dated 23.02.2026. CONTENTIONS OF THE PARTIES 10. Contentions of the Petitioner 10.1. Learned counsel for the Petitioner submitted that the continued detention of the goods is contrary to the statutory scheme of the Act. It was contended that the gold was detained on 26.02.2025 and that the original period of six months contemplated under Section 110(2) of the Act expired without issuance of a Show Cause Notice. 10.2. It was further submitted that the purported extension of the period by the competent authority vide approval dated 20.08.2025 is itself unsustainable. It was contended that the reasons recorded for seeking extension merely refer to the Petitioner having not appeared for appraisement and to the statutory period being due to expire, and do not disclose the requisite application of mind or sufficient cause for exercise of the power under the proviso to Section 110(2) of the Act. It was also contended that the Petitioner was not duly inf....
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....Contentions of the Respondent 11.1. Per contra, learned counsel for the Respondent submitted that the present Petition is misconceived and premature. It was submitted that the Petitioner arrived at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on 26.02.2025 and, after opting for the Green Channel, was intercepted by the Customs authorities, whereupon nine gold bars and one gold chain were recovered from his possession. It was submitted that the goods were duly detained vide Detention Receipt No. 36069 dated 26.02.2025 and that the Petitioner's statement was recorded on the same date. It was submitted that, in the said statement, the Petitioner stated, inter alia, that the recovered goods did not belong to him and also waived the requirement of a Show Cause Notice and personal hearing. 11.2. It was further submitted that the competent authority, vide approval dated 20.08.2025, extended the period for issuance of the Show Cause Notice by a further period of six months under the proviso to Section 110(2) of the Act. The extended period was to expire on 25.02.2026. 11.3. It was submitted that the Petitioner did not appear for appraisement despite being called upon to do so. The Cust....
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....elds. 15. The factual position in the present case, however, is materially different. 16. The goods were detained on 26.02.2025. The Respondent relies upon the approval dated 20.08.2025 whereby the competent authority extended the period contemplated under Section 110(2) of the Act by a further period of six months. The extended period was to expire on 25.02.2026. More importantly, the Show Cause Notice was issued on 23.02.2026. Thus, the Show Cause Notice came to be issued before expiry of the extended period on 25.02.2026. 17. This factual circumstance is decisive for the purpose of the present Petition. The statutory consequence contemplated by Section 110(2) arises when the requisite notice is not issued within the period prescribed by that provision, including the period validly extended in accordance with its proviso. In the present case, the Respondent has issued the Show Cause Notice before expiry of the extended period. 18. It is significant that the present Petition itself was instituted on 01.12.2025. On that date, the extended period under Section 110(2) had not expired. Therefore, even on the date when the writ jurisdiction of this Court was invoked, the Pe....
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....l relief. 23. The present case stands on a different footing. The Respondent has, in fact, issued a written Show Cause Notice dated 23.02.2026 within the extended period under Section 110(2). Consequently, it is not necessary for this Court, for deciding the present Petition, to examine whether the Petitioner had validly waived a Show Cause Notice or personal hearing in his statement dated 26.02.2025. 24. Similarly, the allegations made by the Petitioner regarding the manner in which his statement under Section 108 was recorded, including the allegation that he was compelled to sign pre-written or blank papers, are disputed questions of fact. These allegations also do not require consideration for deciding the limited question arising in the present Petition, particularly when a written Show Cause Notice has now been issued. 25. The Petitioner shall have the opportunity, in the adjudicatory proceedings pursuant to the Show Cause Notice dated 23.02.2026, to raise all permissible objections available to him in law and on facts. Such objections may include the legality of the detention/seizure, the allegations contained in the Show Cause Notice, the evidentiary value or other....