Philips Carbon Black Ltd Vs Commissioner of Customs (CESTAT Bangalore)
CESTAT Bangalore held that the quantity of crude oil actually received into a shore tank in a port in India should be the basis for payment of customs duty. Thus, customs duty needs to be calculated based on crude oil received in shore tank.
Facts- The appellant had imported Carbon Black Feed Stock Oil through Cochin Port. The assessee was issued with a letter for discharging differential duty on the value of the quantity received on which duty was paid and the transaction value of the quantity shown in the respective invoices. Consequently, demand of Rs.25,077/- and Rs.66,851/-were confirmed. The contention of the assessee all along was that there was short-receipt of the imported goods in their shore tank; accordingly, the value has been arrived at on the said quantity and duty was paid.
Conclusion- The taxable event in the case of imported goods, as has been stated earlier, is “import”. The taxable event in the case of a purchase tax is the purchase of goods. The quantity of goods stated in a bill of lading would perhaps reflect the quantity of goods in the purchase transaction between the parties, but would not reflect the quantity of goods at the time and place of importation. A bill of lading quantity therefore could only be validly looked at in the case of a purchase tax but not in the case of an import duty.
