9911796707
TMI Blog2018 (5) TMI 364X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Regulations (CBLR), 2013 issued at Chennai Customs Commissionerate and valid upto 11.05.2024. An offence report dt. 22.05.2017 had been received from the office of the Principal Commissioner of Customs, Mumbai conveying that during investigation of a case, it had been found that some unscrupulous persons had utilized fake and dummy IECs to fraudulently export goods and claimed undue drawback; that the consignments had been booked through three customs brokers; that the appellant was one of them. It appears that an order of continuation of prohibition issued by the Principal Commissioner of Customs (General), Mumbai vide Order No.22/2017/18 against the appellant was received by Custom House Chennai on 18.10.2017. Subsequently, the license of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lusion or suppression of facts on the part of the appellant's Mumbai branch and at the most only negligence in full verification of the documents can be alleged. (iv) As per Regulation 20 of CBLR, after receipt of the offence report, within period of 90 days, SCN has to be issued for initiating enquiry proceedings. In the present case, offence report is dated 22.5.2017, however SCN was received by the appellant only on 6.2.2018. Appellants have already replied to the SCN, to the Inquiry Officer on 24.2.2018 and also attended personal hearing on 5.3.2018. Thus the SCN was not issued in time as provided in the Regulations. 4. On the other hand, Ld.A.R supports the impugned order. He draws our attention to para-12 of the impugned order to po ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Customs shall, within fifteen days from the date of such suspension, give an opportunity of hearing to the Customs Broker whose licence is suspended and may pass such order as he deems fit either revoking the suspension or continuing it, as the case may be, within fifteen days from the date of hearing granted to the Customs Broker : Provided that in case the Commissioner of Customs passes an order for continuing the suspension, the further procedure thereafter shall be as provided in regulation 20." 7. The CBLR 2013 enables a Customs Broker who has been licensed by a particular Customs Commissionerate, to apply to other jurisdictional Commissionerates in other Customs stations, by way of intimation in Form-C / Form B, to transact busine ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r the very same act, omission or enquiry pending or contemplated at the other Customs station, would amount to double jeopardy. Such action will in effect paralyze the functioning of the Customs broker not only in the Customs station where the acts or omissions of the Customs broker are under the scanner, but also in other customs stations and within the parent Customs Commissionerate where the Customs broker has not been found in violation of the CBLR 2013. In any case, if the jurisdictional Commissionerate of Customs at the other Customs station finds that the infraction by the branch of the Customs broker is serious enough requiring further punitive action, he could very well write to the parent Customs Commissionerate conveying the fact ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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