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Customs Act

In a recent decision involving Canon India, the Hon’ble Supreme Court (“SC”) had adjudicated about the authority of the officers of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (“DRI”) to issue a show cause notice (“SCN”) under Section 28 of the Customs Act, 1962 (“Customs Act”) for the recovery of short payment of customs duty.[1] The Hon’ble SC held that a DRI officer does not have the authority to initiate proceedings through SCN issuances, since such an officer was not the person to clear the goods initially.Continue Reading Who is proper officer for customs? The argument continues!

The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India (SC), in the recent case of Steel Authorities of India Ltd.[i], considered the question of admissibility of an appeal, against an order of the Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), filed before the SC under Section 130E(b) of the Customs Act, 1962 (Customs Act).

The SC analysed the provisions pertaining to the appellate mechanism laid down under the Customs Act juxtaposed with the role of the SC and its appellate powers, as envisaged under the Constitution of India (Constitution). It concluded that the appellate powers of the SC in relation to appeals filed against orders of the CESTAT are no different from the said powers of SC in case of an appeal against a judgment/ order of the High Court (HC).

Interestingly however, the SC laid down a non-exhaustive list of conditions for determining the admissibility of appeals, against an order of the CESTAT filed before it. They were as follows:Continue Reading Appeal to the Supreme Court: Rights of Admission Reserved