Commissioner of Customs (Preventive) Vs Indian Oil Corporation Limited (Gujarat High Court)
Gujarat High Court held that Commissioner of Customs doesn’t have jurisdiction to reassess into bond bill of entry in respect of clearances effected from private bonded warehouse. Accordingly, appeal of the revenue is dismissed.
Facts- The respondent imported petroleum products like Crude Oil during the years 1997-98 and 1998-99 at Vadinar Port, Gujarat. The respondent filed Into-Bond Bills of Entry with Customs House Vadinar, Jamnagar for warehousing the imported goods at their private licensed warehouse tanks. The Into-Bond Bills of Entry were assessed provisionally for want of original import documents like invoice, bill of lading, insurance etc., and imported goods were allowed to be kept in warehouse on execution of warehousing bonds in terms of Sec.59(2) of the Customs Act.
The respondent, subsequently, in order to transport the warehoused goods without payment of duty through pipeline to their refineries at Mathura, Koyali and Panipat, executed a bond u/s. 67 of the Customs Act, and thereafter, filed Ex-Bond Bills of Entry on payment of duty assessed by the proper officer at the respective refineries within whose jurisdiction the respective refinery is situated. Accordingly, the provisional assessment made at Vadinar Port was finalized by the respective Customs Authorities and differential duty recovered/refund sanction was made under Sec.1 r/w. Sec.17(4) of the Customs Act.
