The Bombay High Court has quashed the 15 years old SCN (show cause notice) to the Petitioner seeking to impose a penalty under section 112(a) of the Customs Act, 1962, alleging inter alia a classification of clandestine clearance of 663 import assignments without payment of appropriate duty.
The bench of Justice M.S. Sonak and Justice Jitendra Jain has absurd that the show cause notice was issued in 2008, and the alleged transfer to the call book was in 2021. No intimation was given to the Petitioner; therefore, provisions of Section 28(9) of the Customs Act were breached. The department is duty-bound to intimate the party about transferring the matter to the call book.
Table of Contents
Background – Clandestine Clearance
The Petitioner has challenged the show cause notice, which has been pending adjudication before the Respondents for the last 15 years.
The department issued a show cause notice to the Petitioner seeking to impose a penalty under section 112(a) of the Customs Act, 1962, alleging inter alia a classification of clandestine clearance of 663 import assignments without payment of appropriate duty.
The Petitioner filed detailed responses to the show cause notice dated 16 May 2008 on 01 October 2008 and 02 December 2008.
The record bears out that personal hearings were fixed on 03 December 2008, 04 December 2008 and 05 December 2008. The Advocates, on behalf of the Petitioner, did attend such hearings, but no effective hearing took place on the said dates. From December 2008 onwards, there was no progress until December 2011.
Again, in December 2011, a date was fixed for a personal hearing, and the Petitioner’s Advocate attended such a hearing. But still, there was neither an effective personal hearing nor was the show cause notice disposed of.
Nothing was done in the show cause notice for the next five years. On 24 February 2017, almost 9 years after the issue of the show cause notice and 7 years after the last date fixed for hearing, another notice was issued to the Petitioner to attend the personal hearing scheduled on 24 February 2017.
The petitioner’s Advocate participated in the hearing, but there was no effective hearing. On 25 February 2021, 21 years after the issue of the show cause notice, and 4 years from the last date fixed for a personal hearing, another personal hearing was scheduled. This time, the Petitioner requested a hearing through video conferencing, but no link was provided.
Conclusion
The court quashed and set aside the show cause notice and restrained the department from proceeding further based on it.
Case Details
Case Title: Paresh H. Mehta Versus The Union of India
Case No.: Writ Petition No. 14213 Of 2023
Date: 24/10/2024
Counsel For Petitioner: Jas Sanghvi
Counsel For Respondent: J B Mishra
