High Court Imposes Costs on Customs Department for disobedience
THIS pertains to finalisation of provisional assessment by the Assistant Commissioner in the year 1996. The Commissioner (A) allowed the appeal of the importer against which the Department appealed to the Tribunal. The Tribunal in 1997 remanded the matter back to the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals).
Finally, the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), by order dated 31.03.1998, agreed with the contention of the importer. However, the department once again took up the matter before the CESTAT.
The CESTAT passed Majority Order dated 18.04.2005, giving a finding against the petitioner.
Challenging the said order of the CESTAT, the importer had filed Writ Petition and the High Court, by order dated 02.12.2008, dismissed the same on the ground of alternative remedy.
The importer preferred an appeal before the High Court and the Court, by order dated 20.11.2009, allowed the writ appeal in favour of the importer.
However, in spite of the High Court order, the Assistant Commissioner did not finalise the assessment of the 63 imports already made by them.
Therefore, they were constrained to file another writ petition in 2012. The High Court by order dated 07.01.2013, once again directed the Department to rework and finalize the assessment in terms of the 2009 order of the High Court.
Thus the importer had two favourable orders from the High Court on the same issue.
But mere High Court orders don't impress powerful Assistant Commissioners. They will think of implementing the High Court orders only if the Commissioner is pleased to accept the High Court order.
The High Court observed,
From the facts, it is clear that the petitioner has been made to fight a long battle resulting in physical and mental harassment apart from financial implications. When a case like this absolutely warrants imposition of damages, a let-loose and slight approach would only further encourage the authorities in playing foul games even before Courts.
Therefore, although this Court can direct the Government to initiate departmental action against all those officers responsible for non-compliance of the orders passed by this Court, while refraining from doing so, this Court deems it fit to impose exemplary costs of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees one lakh) on the respondent-department and, out of such amount, Rs.50,000/- shall be paid to the petitioner towards the litigation fees and the balance amount of Rs.50,000/- shall be paid to the Tamil Nadu Mediation and Conciliation Centre, Chennai, for wasting the precious time of the Court.
Accordingly, the respondents are directed to complete the said exercise within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
Needless to mention that the department is at liberty to recover the said amount from those persons who are responsible for non-implementation of the orders passed by this Court as stated above, after issuing proper notice to them .
Most probably, they will take the matter to the Supreme Court. And will they recover the cost from the officers responsible. It is almost impossible to find a responsible officer in the department. The High Court had passed its first order in 2009 and in the last six years, at least 20 officers must have dealt with the file and each one of them will prove that he was not responsible.
The importer had to suffer an amount of Rs. 22 lakhs and now the Department will have to pay interest for this amount apart from the cost of a lakh of rupees. This is what the overzealous officers contribute to the Department.
We bring you this order today.
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Also see another order of the Bombay High Court where the SCN was quashed since the same was unadjudicated for 17 years and the amount of Rs.2.07 crores deposited under Protest by the Petitioner in May 1996 was allowed to be claimed as refund along with interest. In this case, the High Court has also directed the Secretary in the Ministry to initiate departmental and other legal proceedings so that all guilty of causing loss to public exchequer are brought to book.
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