Union of India Vs Ajanta Soya Ltd. (Supreme Court of India)
The dispute arose from the levy of customs duty and Agricultural Infrastructure Development Cess (AIDC) on imports of crude soyabean oil under the Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) regime. The petitioners challenged the denial of TRQ exemption benefits despite holding Bills of Lading dated on or before 31 March 2023. The matter was first examined by the Delhi High Court, and thereafter carried in appeal before the Supreme Court of India.
The factual background shows that the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), by Public Notice dated 24 May 2022, allocated TRQ for import of crude soyabean oil and crude sunflower seed oil for FYs 2022–23 and 2023–24, up to 20 lakh metric tonnes per year for each commodity. Correspondingly, the Ministry of Finance issued a notification granting exemption from customs duty and AIDC for imports covered under the TRQ. Subsequently, the DGFT issued a Public Notice dated 11 January 2023 discontinuing the TRQ for crude soyabean oil with effect from 1 April 2023, but allowed imports under the TRQ till 30 June 2023 where Bills of Lading were dated on or before 31 March 2023.
However, Notification No. 15/2023-Customs dated 3 March 2023, issued by the Department of Revenue, did not extend the exemption till 30 June 2023 and restricted it to 31 March 2023. As a result, consignments covered by Bills of Lading dated on or before 31 March 2023, but landing after that date and up to 30 June 2023, were denied exemption and subjected to customs duty and AIDC. Faced with this inconsistency between the DGFT Public Notice and the customs notification, importers approached the Delhi High Court. Some consignments were cleared on payment of duty under protest, and refund was claimed.
