2017 (11) TMI 1616 - HC - Customs

Supply of documents as necessitated by the petitioner - stay of proceedings - Held that - till the next date of hearing, the Inquiry Officer is restrained from passing the final order - We are issuing a short date in the matter, in order to enable the learned counsel for the respondents to obtain instructions and in case, the copies of the relevant documents and oral statements relied upon by the respondents have not been furnished to the petitioner, the same would be brought to the court to be handed over to the petitioner on the next date of hearing.

Summary

Issues: Delay in communication of inquiry letter, Bias of the Inquiry Officer, Non-furnishing of requested documents, Stay on passing final order, Instructions to obtain relevant documents, Relisting the case.

The judgment delivered by the High Court addressed several key issues. Firstly, the petitioner raised concerns regarding the delay in communication of the inquiry letter, highlighting that the letter was signed on 3rd October, 2017, but only received on 8th November, 2017. This delay raised questions about bias and a prejudiced mindset of the Inquiry Officer, as the letter suggested obtaining documents directly from the issuing authority, which were not furnished to the petitioner.

Secondly, the petitioner had repeatedly requested copies of oral statements and documents on multiple occasions, including letters dated 15th September, 21st September, and 3rd October 2017, as well as during the hearing on 5th October 2017. The non-furnishing of these requested documents led to concerns about the fairness of the inquiry process.

In response to these issues, the High Court restrained the Inquiry Officer from passing a final order until the next date of hearing. Additionally, the court directed the respondents' counsel to obtain instructions promptly. If the relevant documents and oral statements were not provided to the petitioner, they were to be brought to court for handover on the next hearing date.

To ensure compliance with the court's directions, the respondents' counsel was instructed to inform the Inquiry Officer immediately about the order to prevent any premature decisions. The case was relisted for further proceedings on 22nd November 2017, and a copy of the order was to be provided expeditiously under the Court Master's signature.

Overall, the judgment focused on addressing the concerns of delay, bias, non-furnishing of documents, and ensuring a fair inquiry process by staying the final order, obtaining relevant documents, and relisting the case for further proceedings.