9911796707
TMI Blog1989 (2) TMI 285X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mported at the Port of Bombay 480 bundles of timber valued at Rs.41,33,504 c.i.f. by the vessel M.V. HOEGH DRAKE. The said timber was stated to be required for manufacture of cooling towers for supply to Hazira Project of Krishak Bharat Co-operative Ltd., Surat, an I.D.A. aided Project. The appellants Custom House Agent presented a home consumption Bill of Entry No.1141/12 and 1141/13 for clearance of the goods. Three imprest licences and three duty exemption entitlement certificates (DEEC) books were also produced to cover the goods. The Customs authorities undertook certain investigations and, as a result, alleged that the goods were liable to confiscation under section 111(m) of the Customs Act, 1962 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t Tacoma from 9-3-1985 to 11-3-85; (b) the goods were loaded on board the vessel on 10.3.85; (c) though 426 bundles of timber were covered by valid licences; there was mis-declaration as regards the date of shipment of the goods. The Bill of Lading showed the date of loading as 20-3-85 which was not correct; (d) licence No. P/L 2967598/C dated 10-8-83 expired on 28-2-85 including the grace period. Shipment of goods valued at Rs. 4.79 lakhs was effected after the expiry of this licence. The licence was not, therefore, valid for clearance of the goods. Also duty exemption was not applicable and duty was leviable. 4. We have heard Shri K.Narasimhan, Advocate, for the appellants and Shri L.C. Chakraborty, DR, for the respondent Collecto ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 0.8.84 i.e.,12 months from the date of issue of the licence. However, in accordance with the provisions contained in paragraph 207(2) of the Hand Book of Import-Export Procedures 1983-1984, where the date of expiry of an import licence falls before the last day of a month, the licence will automatically be valid up to the end of that month. The period of validity of the present licence thus automatically gets extended to 31.8.84. The next circumstance to be noticed is the revalidation endorsement according to which the licence was revalidated for 6 months from the date of expiry of the licence including grace period. 8. Para 209(1) of the aforesaid Hand Book reads: In order to facilitate shipment/despatch of goods against licences, a g ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... upto 10-2-85. The significance of the revalidation endorsement was that from the date of expiry of the licence it was good and valid only for six months including the grace period. In other words, Shri Chakraborty contends that the grace period is not applicable at all to the present revalidated licence. This contention flies in the face of two provisions in the Hand Book. Firstly, it flies in the face of Para 207(2), according to which the period of validity of a licence should be automatically deemed to be extended upto the last date of the month in which the date of expiry falls. Secondly, the contention is against the provision in Para 209(3), according to which the grace period of 60 days is admissible in the case of revalidated licenc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ditional Collector that but for the finding that the goods were shipped after the expiry of the period of validity of the revalidated licence, the goods were eligible for the benefit of duty free entry under the DEEC scheme on account of notification 210/82-Cus., dated 10-9-1982. However, Shri Chakraborty sought to argue that this notification was not applicable to the present goods in view of the fact that the notification referred to in terms in the conditions attached to the licence was notification 117/F.No. 602/14/78-DVK dated 9-6-1978 as amended from time to time. We note that the adjudicating authority had not proceeded on this basis. Apart from that, it is clear that the licence in question is a special imprest licence. Annexure VII ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Section 117 of the Act is in the nature of a residuary provision. It provides for imposition of penalty on a person where no express penalty is provided elsewhere in the Act for contravention of any provision of the Act or abetment of such contravention or failure to comply with any provision of the Act which it was his duty to comply with. We do not think that, on the facts and in circumstances of the present case, Section 117 was attracted. 14. In the result the impugned order is set aside and the appeal is allowed with consequential relief to the appellants. 15. [Per: G.P. Agarwal, Member (J)]. - I have had the advantage of reading the erudite judgment proposed by the learned Senior Vice-President. Since the revalidation endorsement ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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