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2021 (8) TMI 715

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..... language of the said standard itself would draw a clear distinction between Handheld Blender and Handheld Mixer - Further the contention of the Department that the said product was examined by the authorised officer of the BIS posted at Cochin and he has confirmed that the imported apparatus is liable for mandatory BIS compliance as Handheld Blender is without any basis and has been raised only for the first time at the time of argument. No such reference to the authorised officer of BIS or his opinion has neither been provided to the appellant nor made part of the impugned Order-in-Original and not even produced before this Tribunal. Therefore, this stand of the Department has no basis and is liable to be rejected. The appellant has given clear distinctions of tasks that can be performed by Hand blender and Hand Mixer and the said table has been reproduced above. In view of these facts, the Handheld Blenders and Handheld Mixers are two different products and having different specifications, mechanisms, performance, speed, power and even built for performing different tasks. Further, the impugned goods are not liable to have a BIS compliance as mentioned in BIS Kitchen Applianc .....

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..... ot certified by BIS authorities, the same cannot be cleared for home consumption and also is liable for confiscation. Thereafter the appellant who was not aware of such restriction, requested the Department vide their letter dt. 29/01/2021 for taking a lenient view in the matter and requested to allow clearance of the imported goods; but the Department did not accept the request of the appellant and even for re-export of the goods. Thereafter after following the due process, the original authority vide the Order-in-Original confiscated the goods under Section 111(d) of the Customs Act, 1962; however allowed the appellant to redeem the goods on payment of fine of ₹ 3 lakhs solely for the purpose of reexport and also imposed a penalty of ₹ 2 lakhs under Section 112(a) of the Customs Act. The appellant complied with the impugned order to the extent of depositing ₹ 3 lakhs as fine and ₹ 2 lakhs as penalty and thereafter the appellant filed the present appeal. 3. Heard both sides and perused the records. 4.1 Learned counsel for the appellant submitted that the impugned order is not sustainable in law as the same has been passed without properly appreciati .....

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..... rots and three parts water. If this level is not indicated, the bowl is filled to two-thirds of its total capacity. The carrots are soaked in water for 24 h and cut so that the dimensions of the pieces do not exceed 15 mm. If the bowl is not provided, a cylindrical bowl is used which has a capacity of approximately 1 litre and an inner diameter of approximately 110 mm. Blenders for liquid are operated with water instead of the mixture 3.1.9.110 - Food mixers with beaters for mixing cake batter are operated with the beater blades as close as possible to the bottom of a bowl containing dry sand having a grain size between 170 mm2 and 250 mm2. The height of the sand in the bowl is approximately 80 percent of the length of the effective part of the beater. Food mixers with kneaders for mixing yeast dough are operated with the kneaders in a bowl filled with a mixture of flour and water. 3. Para 7 Marking Instruction 7.12 Addition - The instructions for hand- held blenders shall include the substance of the following: a) Always disconnect the blender from the supply if it is left unattended and .....

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..... ile the accessory is rotating at a speed exceeding 1 500 rev/min. Compliance is checked by inspection, by measurement and by manual test. 7. 20.103 -Hand-held blenders shall incorporate a biased off switch, its actuating member being positioned in a recess or otherwise guarded to prevent accidental operation. 20.103 NOTE-This requirement does not apply to hand-held food mixers provided with a blender attachment. 8. Para 25.14- Addition Hand-Held Blenders andHand-Held Mixers are also subjected to the following test while mounted on an apparatus similar to that of Fig. 8. The conjunction and used in between the two products would clearly demonstrate the clear and unambiguous intention of the BIS Authorities in identifying the products as too different independent products 4.2 The learned counsel has also, in a tabular form, given different tasks that can be performed by Handheld blender and Handheld Mixer, which are given below:- TASK HAND BLENDER HAND MIXER .....

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..... this Hon ble Tribunal and hence the same cannot be considered for deciding the present case. He also submitted that the contention of the Department that Handheld Blenders are not defined in IS: 302-2 -14 is absolutely baseless. He further submitted that specifications for Handheld Blenders are categorically mentioned in para 7.12, para 11.7.103, para 20.02, para 20.102, para 20.103 and para 25.14 of the IS: 302-2-14. He also submitted that IS: 302-2-14 had also clearly differentiated Handheld Blenders from Handheld Mixers in para 11.7.103/110, para 20.101/102, para 20.103 and in para 25.14 of the IS:302-2-14 and hence the contention of the respondent in this regard is also unsustainable. 5. On the other hand, the learned AR reiterated the findings of the impugned order and submitted that the impugned import goods are subject to mandatory compliance of BIS Kitchen Appliances (Quality Control) Order, 2018 and the Department found that the impugned goods are not found to have complied with the said Standard and therefore Department confiscated the goods with an option to reexport the imported goods on payment of redemption fine. 6. After considering the submissions of both s .....

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..... this stand of the Department has no basis and is liable to be rejected. Further the Department s stand that Handheld Blenders are not defined in IS:302-2-2014 is also not correct because various parts of the BIS standards give specifications for Handheld Blenders and Handheld Mixers as has been noted above. Further I find that the appellant has given clear distinctions of tasks that can be performed by Hand blender and Hand Mixer and the said table has been reproduced above. In view of these facts, I am of the considered opinion that the Handheld Blenders and Handheld Mixers are two different products and having different specifications, mechanisms, performance, speed, power and even built for performing different tasks. Further, I am of the opinion that the impugned goods are not liable to have a BIS compliance as mentioned in BIS Kitchen Appliances (Quality Control) Order, 2018 as the same is not applicable in the impugned goods and therefore I set aside the impugned order and allow the appeal of the appellant and direct the Customs authorities to release the goods on payment of appropriate customs duty which the appellant has already paid as per his submissions. Hence, the appea .....

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