2019 (12) TMI 1076 - HC - Customs

Import of Gold Coins - confiscation of the gold coins and imposition of penalty. - Notifications 24/2015-2020 and 25/2015-2020, dated 25th August, 2017, issued by the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) - Public Notice No. 20/201-2020, dated 25th August, 2017 - HELD THAT - The confusion appears to have arisen owing to the challenging by the petitioner of Notifications 24/2015-2020 and 25/2015-2020, dated 25th August, 2017, and Public Notice 20/2015-2020, also dated 25th August, 2017, vide one writ petition, and the Show Cause Notice, issued in terms of the said notifications and Public Notice, vide the present writ petition - It was owing to this duplication of proceedings that this Court, under the impression that the Show Cause Notice dated 8th September, 2017 was not challenged, expressed its inability to quash the same. Mr. Amit Bansal, learned Senior Standing Counsel appearing for the Custom Authorities, very fairly does not oppose the prayer and acknowledges that, in fact, Show Cause Notice dated 8th September, 2017 has been challenged by the petitioner as well, in the present WP (C) 8204/2017. Impugned SCN is quashed - review petition allowed.

Summary

Issues:
Condonation of delay in preferring review petition, Interpretation of Notifications and Public Notices, Challenge to Show Cause Notice

Condonation of Delay in Preferring Review Petition:
The High Court considered an application for condonation of a five-day delay in filing a review petition in WP(C) No. 8204/2017. The Court found reasonable grounds for the delay based on the reasons provided and thus allowed the application, condoning the delay and disposing of the matter.

Interpretation of Notifications and Public Notices:
The judgment revolved around Notifications 24/2015-2020 and 25/2015-2020, dated 25th August 2017, issued by the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), and Public Notice No. 20/2015-2020, dated 25th August 2017, concerning the import of gold coins. The Court held that these notifications came into effect on 28th August 2017 and could not be applied retroactively to imports made before that date. Consequently, Show Cause Notices proposing confiscation of gold coins and penalties were issued to the petitioners for non-compliance with the notifications. The Court quashed the impugned notifications and held that they did not apply to the imported gold coins that had left the Republic of Korea on 25th August 2017.

Challenge to Show Cause Notice:
In the review petition, it was pointed out that an error had occurred in the original judgment regarding the challenge to the Show Cause Notice dated 8th September 2017. The confusion arose due to the duplication of proceedings where challenges to different legal instruments were made in separate writ petitions. The Court acknowledged the challenge to the Show Cause Notice in the present review petition and, to maintain consistency with previous decisions, quashed and set aside the Show Cause Notice issued to the petitioner in WP(C) 8204/2017. The Senior Standing Counsel for the Custom Authorities did not oppose this decision, leading to the allowance of the review petition and the quashing of the Show Cause Notice.

This detailed analysis of the judgment showcases the Court's considerations regarding the delay in filing the review petition, the interpretation of relevant notifications and public notices, and the resolution of challenges to the Show Cause Notice, providing a comprehensive understanding of the legal issues involved and the Court's decisions on each matter.