2015 (12) TMI 1091 - AT - Customs

Levy of Penalty u/s 112 for wrong filing of Bill of entry on the employee of CHA - Revocation of ID Card - Held that - So for imposition of penalty upon the appellant is concerned , it is observed from the case records that he was not authorized by his employee M/s. Lee & Muirhead Pvt Ltd to make entries in the registers on behalf of another CHA. Appellant not only produced a forged test report from CFL but also filed a bill of entry No. 2697 dt 21/07/2006 without filing of IGM. These facts and contraventions have been clearly reflected in Para- 25 of the show cause notice dt 16/10/2006 issued to the appellant. imposition of penalty ₹ 1 lakh upon the appellant ordered by the Adjudicating authority under Sec 112 of the Customs Act 1962 and the same is upheld Revocation of ID Card - no show cause notice has been issued by the appropriate authority issuing such card, to revoke the card. On verification of the show cause notice dt 16/10/2006, issued interalia, to the appellant we find it so. It is also observed that there is no provision in the Customs Act 1962 to revoke an identity card issued to the appellant. Accordingly we hold Adjudicating Authority was not justified in revoking the Identity card of the appellant for which no show cause notice was issued. Order passed by the Adjudication authority regarding revoking Identity card No. 113/CA/LC is set aside - Decided partly in favour of appellant.

Summary

Issues:
1. Imposition of penalty under Sec 112 of the Customs Act 1962
2. Revocation of the appellant's identity card

Imposition of Penalty under Sec 112:
The appellant filed an appeal against the penalty imposed by the Adjudicating authority under Sec 112 of the Customs Act 1962. The appellant, represented by Sh. Arijit Chakraborty, argued that the appellant's actions were bonafide and that there was no provision to revoke the identity card. The appellant filed a Bill of Entry on behalf of M/S. S.B. International with a forged test certificate from CFL. The Revenue, represented by Sh. S.P Pal, contended that the appellant violated customs provisions by not filing IGM and drawing samples without a customs officer present. The Adjudicating authority found the appellant guilty of producing forged documents and unauthorized actions. The Tribunal upheld the penalty of &8377; 1 lakh imposed on the appellant, citing violations of Sec 30, 132, and 146 of the Customs Act 1962.

Revocation of Identity Card:
The Adjudicating authority also revoked the appellant's identity card, which was challenged in the appeal. The appellant's counsel argued that no show cause notice was issued for revocation, and there was no provision in the Customs Act to revoke the identity card. Upon review, the Tribunal found that no show cause notice was issued for revocation, and there was no legal basis for revoking the identity card. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the Adjudicating authority's decision to revoke the identity card. The appeal was allowed in this regard, and the appellant's identity card revocation was deemed unjustified.

In conclusion, the Tribunal upheld the imposition of the penalty of &8377; 1 lakh on the appellant under Sec 112 of the Customs Act 1962. However, the Tribunal set aside the revocation of the appellant's identity card, as there was no legal basis or show cause notice for such action. The appeal was allowed only regarding the revocation of the identity card, and the appellant's identity card was reinstated.