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Issues:
1. Confiscation of gold and foreign currency under Customs Act, 1962. 2. Imposition of fines and penalties under various sections of the Customs Act, 1962. Analysis: 1. The case involved passengers intercepted with 85 foreign marked gold bars and undeclared foreign currency. The Adjudicator ordered confiscation of the gold bars and foreign currency under Sections 111(d), 111(i), and 111(l) of the Customs Act, 1962. An option to redeem the gold on payment of a fine was provided. The Adjudicator also imposed penalties and ordered confiscation of other items used for concealment. The appellate tribunal found the passengers eligible for duty-paid clearance of the gold but upheld confiscation and redemption fine. The tribunal disagreed with the defense that the passengers were intercepted before declaring the gold and currency. 2. Regarding the absolute confiscation of foreign currency, the tribunal upheld confiscation under Section 111(l) for non-declaration but did not confirm the confiscation under Section 111(d). The tribunal noted that foreign currency importation was not banned, and the non-declared currency was slightly above the allowed limit. The tribunal suggested imposing a redemption fine for non-declaration. The penalty imposed under Section 114(i) required a review of the quantum in this case, along with the liability under Section 112 as mentioned in the show cause notice. 3. Referring to a previous case, the tribunal considered a redemption fine of Rs. 10 lakhs each to be adequate for the gold and foreign currency found on the passengers. The tribunal also deemed a penalty of Rs. 3 lakhs on each passenger to be sufficient in the circumstances of this case. Based on these findings, the tribunal allowed the appeal on the specified terms, modifying the fines and penalties imposed by the Adjudicator under the Customs Act, 1962.
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