Ashish Bansal Vs Principal Commissioner of Customs (Preventive) (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court heard a petition filed by Ashish Bansal challenging an order that imposed significant penalties under the Customs Act, 1962. The penalties, totaling 2,00,00,000 and Rs. 110,58,00,000, were related to the seizure of gold bars from other individuals and the alleged treatment of recovered Indian currency and bank account credits as proceeds of smuggled goods. The Adjudicating Authority concluded that the petitioner was involved in the smuggling activities.
Mr. Bansal contested the order, arguing that the penalties were based on unsubstantiated assumptions, especially the assumption that all funds deposited in his accounts were derived from smuggled gold. He asserted that he possesses books of accounts to verify the source of these funds and had paid applicable taxes. He also claimed that the substantial penalty effectively prevents him from appealing the findings due to the required pre-deposit amount. The petitioner provided details of his bank accounts, which showed limited funds, and submitted bank statements indicating no significant withdrawals.
Considering the petitioner’s right to appeal before the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal and his financial condition, the Delhi High Court did not directly address the challenge to the order. Instead, it directed the Tribunal to consider Mr. Bansal’s appeal on its merits, without requiring any pre-deposit. The court clarified that it did not express any opinion on the merits of the original order, and the Tribunal is to conduct its review independently of any observations made by the High Court.
