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TMI Blog2024 (12) TMI 543X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the notice to the Adjudicating Authority for adjudication by a proper officer under Section 28 of the Customs Act, 1962. In view of the above, this petition stands disposed of. - HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA AND HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE D.N.RAY Appearance : For the Petitioner(s) No. 1,2: Mr. Prasannan Nambodiri, Mr. Jainish P Shah (7033). For the Respondent(s) No. 5: Mr Siddharth H Dave (5306). For the Respondent(s) No. 3: Ms Hetvi H Sancheti (5618). For the Respondent(s) No. 1,2: Rule Not Recd Back. For the Respondent(s) No. 4: Rule Served. ORAL ORDER (PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA) 1. Heard Mr. Prasannan Nambodiri, learned advocate appearing for Mr. Jainish P. Shah, learned advocate for the petitioners; Mr. Sid ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Cause Notice F.No. DRI/AZU/GI-02/Enq-47/2016 dated 14.3.2017 issued by the Respondent No. 3 to petitioner Nos. 1 2. 3. Learned advocate Mr. Prasannan Nanbodiri appearing for the petitioners submitted that the main grievance of the petitioners is that respondent Nos. 3 would not have any jurisdiction to issue the notice in view of the decision of Hon ble Apex Court in case of Commissioner of Customs Vs. Canon India Pvt. Ltd. reported in (2024) SCC Online SC 3188. 3.1 It was further submitted that now the Hon ble Supreme Court by the judgement and order dated 7th November, 2024 passed in Review Petition No.400 of 2021 in Civil Appeal No. 1827 of 2018 in case of Commissioner of Customs Vs. Canon India Pvt. Ltd . has held that the respondent N ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to above thereby seriously affecting the correctness of the same. b. The decision in Canon India (supra) failed to consider the statutory scheme of Sections 2(34) and 5 of the Act, 1962 respectively. As a result, the decision erroneously recorded the finding that since DRI officers were not entrusted with the functions of a proper officer for the purposes of Section 28 in accordance with Section 6, they did not possess the jurisdiction to issue show cause notices for the recovery of duty under Section 28 of the Act, 1962. c. The reliance placed in Canon India (supra) on the decision in Sayed Ali (supra) is misplaced for two reasons first, Sayed Ali (supra) dealt with the case of officers of customs (Preventive), who, on the date of the deci ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... aos and confusion would continue to subsist despite the introduction of the said section with retrospective effect. In view of this, the High Court declined to give retrospective operation to Section 28 (11) for the period prior to 08.04.2011 by harmoniously construing it with Explanation 2 to Section 28 of the Act, 1962. We are of the considered view that the decision in Mangali Impex (supra) failed to take into account the policy being followed by the Customs department since 1999 which provides for the exclusion of jurisdiction of all other proper officers once a show cause notice by a particular proper officer is issued. It could be said that this policy provides a sufficient safeguard against the apprehension of the issuance of multipl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... roper officers for the purposes of Section 28 and are competent to issue show cause notice thereunder. Therefore, any challenge made to the maintainability of such show cause notices issued by this particular class of officers, on the ground of want of jurisdiction for not being the proper officer, which remain pending before various forums, shall now be dealt with in the following manner: a. Where the show cause notices issued under Section 28 of the Act, 1962 have been challenged before the High Courts directly by way of a writ petition, the respective High Court shall dispose of such writ petitions in accordance with the observations made in this judgment and restore such notices for adjudication by the proper officer under Section 28. b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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