Gian Castings Pvt Ltd Vs Commissioner of Central Excise and Customs (CESTAT Chandigarh)
CESTAT Chandigarh considered 25 appeals arising from a common Order-in-Appeal No. ASR-CUSTOMS-PVR-APP-147-171-14-15 dated 23.07.2014 concerning enhancement of the assessable value of imported Heavy Melting Steel Scrap and Light Melting Steel Scrap. The appellant had filed 25 Bills-of-entry declaring the goods under Customs Tariff Sub-heading 72044900. The declared rates ranged from USD 220 to USD 375 per MT, while the enhanced rates were USD 393 or USD 400 per MT. The appellant paid customs duty on the enhanced transaction values and obtained clearance of the goods, but subsequently challenged the rejection of the declared values and the enhancement before the Commissioner (Appeals), who dismissed the appeals.
The appellant submitted that the enhancement was based on data provided by the Department of Valuation and that the declared transaction value could not be rejected without cogent evidence. It was contended that payment of enhanced duty was made out of compulsion to clear the goods and did not prevent the appellant from challenging the assessment. The appellant also relied on Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962 and several judicial decisions concerning transaction value, NIDB data, valuation rules, Directorate of Valuation guidelines and the requirement for individual examination of imported transactions. The Revenue supported the enhancement, relying on Directorate of Valuation guidelines and decisions concerning acceptance of enhanced values and subsequent challenges.
