9911796707
|
Home
Issues involved: Appellants imported goods without reflecting some in Bills of Entry, leading to non-payment of duty. Adjudication involved imposition of duty, redemption fine, and penalty under Section 114A of the Customs Act, 1962.
The judgment by the Appellate Tribunal CESTAT CHENNAI involved a case where the appellants imported goods during February 1999 to April 2000, failing to reflect some in the Bills of Entry and not paying duty on them. Upon discovering this, the appellants voluntarily informed the Chief Commissioner and paid the duty along with interest. The adjudicating Commissioner imposed a duty amount of &8377; 54,37,268/-, a redemption fine of &8377; 3 lakhs, and a penalty of &8377; 13,59,370/- under Section 114A of the Customs Act, 1962. The counsel for the appellants argued that as the disclosure was voluntary without prior detection by the Department, and there was no intention to evade duty or deliberate suppression, Section 114A of the Customs Act should not apply. Mention was made of other cases where nominal redemption fines and lesser penalties were imposed for similar voluntary disclosures under Section 112A of the Customs Act, 1962. After hearing both sides, the Tribunal concluded that Section 114A of the Customs Act was not applicable in this case due to the voluntary disclosure by the appellants. They had paid the duty and interest for the omitted goods voluntarily. The Tribunal noted that a previous case adjudicated by the Commissioner of Customs imposed a redemption fine of &8377; 2.50 lakhs and a penalty of &8377; 50,000/- under Section 112A for a similar duty amount. The Tribunal confirmed the redemption fine of &8377; 3 lakhs but set aside the penalty under Section 114A, instead imposing a penalty of &8377; 1,00,000/- under Section 112A. The appeal was rejected. This judgment highlights the importance of voluntary disclosure in customs cases and the application of specific penal provisions under the Customs Act based on the circumstances of each case.
|
