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Issues: Challenge to adjudication order under Customs Act, principles of natural justice, appeal to appellate authority, delay in filing petition.
In the present Writ Appeal, the challenge was to the order dated 14th October, 2004 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.(C) No. 30271 of 2004-D. The petitioner was issued a show cause notice under Section 124 of the Customs Act by the Collector of Central Excise and Customs, followed by an adjudication order dated 30-3-1994. The challenge was against both the show cause notice and the adjudication order, but since the notice had merged into the order, the surviving challenge was only to the adjudication order. The petitioner had also filed an appeal before the Customs, Excise and Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal seeking exemption from making a pre-deposit, but was asked to deposit an amount of Rs.1,00,000. The petitioner challenged this order in the Madras High Court, which was dismissed, and the appeal was eventually dismissed due to non-deposit. The petitioner then waited for nine years before filing the present petition, claiming violation of natural justice in the adjudicating order. The learned Single Judge observed that the petitioner, having invoked the appellate remedy, could not later file a writ petition against the adjudicating authority's order. The judgment of the learned Single Judge was upheld, finding no illegality or impropriety in the order. The appellant's counsel contended that there was no material before the adjudicating authority to pass the order regarding imprisonment or penalty, as no evidence connecting the appellant to smuggling activities was presented. However, the Court did not find merit in this contention, noting that the order was appealable, and an appeal was filed but not pursued to completion. The appellant did not claim that the adjudicating authority lacked jurisdiction. The delay of nine years in challenging the order was unexplained, especially considering the appellant had been released from jail in 1995. The Court held that the question raised by the counsel was factual and should be addressed by the appellate authority. Due to the lack of merit in the writ appeal, it was dismissed. In conclusion, the writ appeal challenging the adjudication order under the Customs Act, based on principles of natural justice, the appeal to the appellate authority, and the delay in filing the petition was dismissed by the High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam.
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