Agya Singh Vs Commissioner of Customs (Delhi High Court)
Delhi High Court held that detention of gold/jewellery is held to be impermissible since show cause notice has not been issued post detention. Accordingly, petition disposed of and detained jewellery directed to be released.
Facts- The present petition has been filed by the Petitioner- Agya Singh under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, inter alia, seeking release of one gold chain, weighing 115 grams seized by the Respondent vide detention dated 11th November 2022.
The case of the Petitioner is that he was traveling from Bangkok to New Delhi on 11thNovember, 2022. Upon his arrival at the IGI Airport, New Delhi, his gold chain weighing 115 grams which he is stated to have been wearing was detained by the Customs Department. The detention receipt was issued to the Petitioner however, no appraisal of the gold chain has been done till date. Moreover, no Show Cause Notice has been issued to the Petitioner.
Conclusion- Held that once the goods are detained, it is mandatory to issue a SCN and afford a personal hearing to the Petitioner. The time prescribed under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, is a period of six months. However, subject to complying with the requirements therein, a further extension for a period of six months can be taken by the Customs Department for issuing the SCN. In this case, the one year period itself has elapsed, yet no SCN has been issued. Accordingly, the detention is impermissible.
