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TMI Blog2022 (11) TMI 870X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eet under the extant Regulations and the culmination in revocation. There is no justification offered for the delay; nor do we find from the records that the appellant, by acts of omission and commission, had contributed to the delay. On the other hand, it appears that the first inquiry authority had failed to take up the task assigned to him till his retirement and licencing authority did permit that state of affairs to continue without monitorial oversight - Casual disregard of timelines is not to be encouraged as it would only lead to stealthy dilution of timelines that the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has considered appropriate to bind authorities subordinate to it with. It is also incorrect on the part of Learned Authorized Representative to contend that pending proceedings was no detriment as far as appellant is concerned. Not only is it demonstrative of breach of public duty but also prolongs sysiphean agony that bordering on sadism - Appeal allowed. - CUSTOMS APPEAL NO. 85232 OF 2020 - FINAL ORDER NO. A/86084/2022 - Dated:- 17-11-2022 - MR C J MATHEW, MEMBER (TECHNICAL) AND MR AJAY SHARMA, MEMBER (JUDICIAL) Shri N D George, Advocate for the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ms by their clients, M/s Krishna Impex, M/s Damodar Industries and M/s Navdurga Industries, at Mumbai and Goa. It is contended by him that the timelines prescribed in the Regulations of then, and now, had been observed in its breach, that the findings were based on statements claimed to be inculpatory even as adjudication proceedings in show cause notice of 21st July 2006 had been concluded in order of 7 th November 2008 without any adverse finding against them and that the licence held by them could not have been cancelled by extra jurisdictional authority. 4. According to Learned Authorized Representative, the admissions in the several statements unravels the material linkage of the persona and the trail of illicit imports bearing the hallmarks of the appellant s involvement which can be ignored only at the cost of insistence on the professional obligations expected from a customs broker. Contending that the statements were sufficiently demonstrative of the correctness of the allegations with which the appellant had been charged, he urged that there were no mitigating circumstances for reduction of the detriment visited on the appellant. It was also pointed out that the delay ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Section 108 of the Customs Act made by the importer, as well as, the appellant herein. In the circumstances, that the appeals are pending before the Tribunal any observation by us, would in our view impact the merits of the matter. However, we may state that in law, there is no bar to a statement made under Section 108 being admitted as evidence by the Tribunal. In this regard see the observations of the Supreme Court in the case of Assistant Collector of Central Excise, Rajamundry v. Duncan Agro Industries Ltd Ors. - 2000 (120) ELT 280 (SC) = (2000) 7 SCC 53 in paragraph 11, 12 and 17 at pages 58 and 59 and in the case of K.I. Pavunny v. Assistant Collector (HQ), Central Excise Collectorate, Cochin - 1997 (90) ELT 241 (SC) = (1997) 3 SCC 721 in paras 19, 20, 21, 25 and 31 at pages 739-741, 742 and 745-746. xxxxx 6.15 .. It is in these circumstances, that the Tribunal observed that since the statements of the two passengers had not been subjected to cross-examination by the appellant/CHA i.e., Vijay Thakkar and given the fact that Vijay Thakkar himself had retracted his own statement under Section 108, the statements could not be relied upon. In our view, the Tribunal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed upon for evidence in trial proceedings under Central Excise Act. 1944 and Customs Act, 1962. The direction of the Hon ble High Court was specific to the submissions made therein and upon the decisions cited by the rival sides in that proceeding. 9. The licencing authority should have borne in mind that the law that was espoused in arguments on validity of statements recorded by officers of central excise and officers of customs, in re Duncan Agro Industries Ltd and in re KI Pavunny, had undergone substantial transformation in Finance Act, 1988 by incorporation of section 138B in Customs Act, 1962. Hence, the absence of evidence sufficient enough to corroborate statements that was the foundation for depriving a customs broker of his livelihood, and of others employed by him, prejudices the sustainability of revocation. 10. We also find that there has been substantial delay between the issuance of charge-sheet under the extant Regulations and the culmination in revocation. There is no justification offered for the delay; nor do we find from the records that the appellant, by acts of omission and commission, had contributed to the delay. On the other hand, it appears that the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e in a particular manner, it must be performed in such a manner, the use of the word shall in the Regulation has been construed as mandatory. xxxxxxx In that case, it was held that where a public officer was directed by statute to perform a duty within a specific time the case is established that the provisions are only directory, as already discussed above. There might be reason why such time limits cannot be adhered to and these reasons may be at times attributable to the revenue and some time to the Customs house agent. Strict adherence to the said time limit and not making it even slightly flexible would warrant a situation where even one day deviation from the time line would be equally fatal as a delay of one year. This surely is not the intention in framing the Regulation. Undisputedly, the intention is to curb the delay in concluding the inquiries, however, it should not be stretched to an extent where it would defeat the very purpose of the Regulation, being to enforce a regime of discipline in the Customs arena and it would result in letting the miscreant set loose by taking benefit of deviation of the time schedule. and the highlighting by Learned Author ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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