2020 (1) TMI 1602 - HC - Customs

Refund of IGST and MEIS - error in few shipping bills - HELD THAT - The respondents are directed to ensure that the refund claims of the petitioner are processed and paid within four weeks, unless it is found that the same are not payable for any reason. The payment shall be made with interest as per law. However, if the respondents wish to contest any part of the petitioner s refund claim, they shall file the counter-affidavit within four weeks. Mr. Ahluwalia, who appears on behalf of respondent No. 7, states that so far as the petitioner s claim for MEIS benefit on exports from DGFT is concerned, the said respondents would forthwith process petitioner s claim in respect whereof the shipping bills have been successfully uploaded, as indicated in the extract from the e-mail dated 23.01.2020 tendered by Ms. Sonu Bhatnagar in Court. The respondent No. 7 are directed to process the claims manually in respect of such bills that have not been uploaded - List on 26.02.2020.

Summary

Issues:
1. Processing and payment of refund claims of the petitioner within a specified timeframe.
2. Resolution of issues related to refund claims for IGST and MEIS benefits.
3. Filing of counter-affidavit by respondents contesting any part of the petitioner's refund claim.

Issue 1: Processing and payment of refund claims
The court directed the respondents to ensure that the refund claims of the petitioner are processed and paid within four weeks, unless found not payable. The payment should include interest as per law. Respondents were given the option to contest any part of the refund claim by filing a counter-affidavit within four weeks. Respondent No. 7 agreed to process the petitioner's MEIS benefit claim for exports where shipping bills were successfully uploaded, as per the email submitted in court. The remaining claims were to be processed manually by respondent No. 7.

Issue 2: Resolution of issues related to IGST and MEIS refund claims
Out of the 12 refund claims listed, 5 related to IGST refund and 7 to MEIS benefits. For the 5 IGST-related shipping bills, 3 were cleared and at the stage of refund, while 2 had invoicing mismatches being resolved through the DG System. Regarding the 7 MEIS-related shipping bills, 4 were successfully uploaded, and the remaining 3 were facing internal system errors being resolved with the help of NIC and DG System. Respondent No. 4 & 5 were actively working to resolve these issues, with assurances from the DG System for timely resolution.

Issue 3: Filing of counter-affidavit by respondents
If the respondents wished to contest any part of the petitioner's refund claim, they were required to file a counter-affidavit within four weeks. Respondent No. 7 was directed to process manually the claims for bills that had not been uploaded, ensuring all claims were addressed promptly. The case was listed for further proceedings on 26.02.2020.