The Delhi High Court has quashed the customs confiscation order passed without show cause notice (SCN).
The bench of Justice Prathiba M. Singh and Justice Rajneesh Kumar Gupta has observed that the order passed in original without issuance of SCN and without hearing the Petitioner, is not sustainable in law.
The petition was filed by Javed Alam under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking release of the goods seized by the Respondent-Commissioner of Customs.
The Petitioner is an Indian citizen who was travelling from Dubai. According to the Petitioner, there was a wedding in the family for which he purchased various gift items in Dubai and he passed through the Red Channel at the IGI Airport, New Delhi when he arrived on the intervening night of 19/ 20 September, 2024.
The list of the goods seized were 3 pieces of branded mufflers, 13 pieces of Pashmina / Shahtoosh Shawls, 44 pieces of branded clothes, and 2 Johnnie Walker Blue label bottles.
The petitioner submitted that despite him having gone to the Channel, he was made to wait for more than six hours and instead of asking him to pay the duty, the goods of the Petitioner were detained. The Petitioner also claims that a statement under Section 108 of the Customs Act, 1962 was recorded forcefully by the Customs Department.
The first and second appraisal of the goods has been done. The Order- in-Original dated 15th January 2025 has been passed by which the free allowances are rejected and absolute confiscation of all the goods has been directed. Further, a penalty of Rs.1,60,000 is imposed upon the Petitioner.
The case of the Petitioner is that no Show Cause Notice (SCN) was served upon the Petitioner and no personal hearing was granted.
The court held that since the Petitioner is willing to pay the customs duty, the customs duty shall be determined and the order shall be passed by the Adjudicating Authority in accordance with law within a period of two months after the hearing.
Case Details
Case Title: Javed Alam Versus Commissioner of Customs
Case No.: W.P.(C) 4538/2025
Date: 09/04/2025
Counsel For Petitioner: Richa Kumari
Counsel For Respondent: Aditya Singla
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