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TMI Blog2016 (2) TMI 649X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... this OIO dt 20/5/2011 Adjudicating authority, interalia, has imposed penalties of Rs. 25 lakh, Rs. 1 lakh & Rs. 1 lakh; upon appellants Sh. Sanjay Saha @ Sona Saha, Sh. Chabi Mondal and Sh. Shib Shankar Dutta respectively under Sec-114 (i) of the Customs Act 1962. 2. None appeared on behalf of Sh. Chabi Mondal. 3. Sh. Sukendu Bhattacharjee (Advocate) appearing on behalf of appellant Shib Shankar Dutta argued that his client is the owner of the seized / confiscated vehicle which was used without the knowledge of his client and that in the absence of his knowledge of the contraband being carried in his vehicle no penalty can be imposed upon his client. He relied upon the following case laws in support of his argument:- (i) Tripti Mondal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tement of Sh. Sanjay Saha alias Sona was retracted by the appellant while filing his bail application. It was argued by Learned Advocate that statement dt 16/12/09 of his client was recorded under threat and duress. Learned Advocate made the bench go through the last two paras of statement dt 16/12/2009 of his client to argue that this statement was recorded on 16/12/2009 and he was again given another summon to appear on the next day. That no statement dt 17/12/2009 was recorded & he was arrested on 16/12/2009. Which itself indicate his client's continued detention & use of threat. That the statement dt 16/12/2009 of his client was recorded in altogether a different case which was three months later from the date of seizure of Red Sanders ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nfiscations passed by the Adjudicating authority. Carrier truck WB-57A 0591 was also confiscated under Sec 115 of the Customs Act 1962 & allowed redemption after payment of redemption fine of Rs. 1.5 lakh. No appeal against the said Confiscation/Redemption has been filed by appellant Sh. Shib Shankar Dutta. 7. So for as penalty of Rs. 1 lakh imposed upon Sh. Chabi Mondal, Driver of the seized/confiscated vehicle, is concerned, it is observed from the statement dt 20/9/2009 of this appellant that he was running truck No. WB-57A 0591 on behalf of Sh. Sanjay Saha and that before this he was also running other trucks of Sh. Sanjay Saha. It is also coming out from the statement of Sh. Chabi Saha that he was also involved in smuggling of Red San ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tta, on internal page-14 of the O-I-O dt 20/5/2011, that entire findings against this appellant are given only based an presumptions & surmises. There is no evidence in the form of a statement etc that Sh. Shib Shankar Dutta was aware that his truck is being used for smuggling of 10,922 kgs of Red sanders wood & 4508 kgs of Potatoes to Bangladesh. Accordingly penalty imposed upon Sh. Shib Shankar Dutta is required to be set aside. 9. A penalty of Rs. 25 lakh has been imposed upon appellant Sh. Sanjay Saha alias Sona Saha by the Adjudicating Authority under Sec 114 (i) of the Customs Act 1962. It is the case of this appellant that his statement dt 16/12/09 was recorded in another proceedings & also that the same was recorded under duress & ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... refuses knowledge of the address of the owner. It is surprising as to how this appellant does not know the address of the owner of truck No. WB-57A-059 who has given him valuable assets. Answers to most of the questions, asked during investigation & recorded in appellants statement dt 16/12/2009, are evasive without confessing anything special. Only factual details known to Sh. Sanjay Saha were confirmed by him. It is not appreciated by the bench as to what the appellant retracted when nothing substantial is confessed. An argument taken that he retracted his statement in a bail application does not carry any meaning when copy of the bail application was neither produced before the Adjudicating authority nor before the bench to highlight a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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