Customs: Is First Secretary, Indian High Commission, a competent authority to furnish authentic trade information?
WHAT they imported was betel nuts from Indonesia/Thailand and the demand was around ten Crores, on charges of under valuation. The appellants before the Tribunal assailed the reliance placed on the report of the First Secretary (Commerce) High Commission of India, Singapore. While the Tribunal remanded the matter to the Adjudicating Authority, it gave its findings on this issue by observing:
"Their objections that First Secretary (Commerce) stationed in Singapore is not empowered to gather information and to assist investigation is clearly overlooking the jurisdiction given to the said First Secretary. As rightly pointed out by the learned Spl. Counsel, the First secretary (Commerce) is a competent authority to furnish authentic trade information from ASEAN countries".
This part of the Tribunal Order was challenged in the Supreme Court by the importers.
The Supreme Court observed, "In our considered opinion, since the Tribunal has remanded the matter for de-novo adjudication before the Adjudicating Authority, even the issue as to whether the First Secretary (Commerce) is a competent authority to furnish authentic trade information from ASEAN countries could have been kept open, so that the parties could have agitated this issue as well. Since that has not been done, we set aside that portion of the conclusion reached by the Tribunal and now direct the Adjudicating Authority to permit the Appellant to raise the aforesaid issue and after adjudication, pass a speaking order on the same".