Puja Kumari Vs Commissioner of Customs (Delhi High Court)
The petitioner approached the Delhi High Court under Article 226 seeking release of two gold bangles and two iPhones detained by the Customs Department when she returned from Dubai to India on 10 October 2023. The petitioner stated that these items were received as gifts on her marriage in February 2023 and were for personal use. The Customs Department, however, had passed an order-in-original (OIO) on 19 December 2023 directing absolute confiscation of the goods and imposing a penalty of Rs. 1,20,000 under Sections 111(d), 111(i), 111(j), 111(m), 112(a), and 112(b) of the Customs Act, 1962. The order also denied any free allowance and declared the petitioner an ineligible passenger under Notification No. 50/2017-Cus read with the Baggage Rules, 2016.
The petitioner challenged the OIO before the Appellate Authority. Upon reviewing the appeal, the Appellate Authority found the detained items to be bonafide gifts belonging to the petitioner. The Authority considered the petitioner’s marriage certificate, UAE residency documents of her husband, and other relevant evidence. It concluded that the items were intended for personal use, not for commercial purposes, and there was no evidence of habitual offending or involvement in smuggling syndicates. The Authority observed that Section 125 of the Customs Act allows for the redemption of goods on payment of a fine in lieu of absolute confiscation. Based on these findings, the Appellate Authority modified the OIO, allowing release of the goods upon payment of a redemption fine of Rs. 1,30,000 plus applicable customs duty, while upholding the original penalty of Rs. 1,20,000. The appeal was disposed of with these modifications on 3 March 2025.
