Marks Logistics Vs Commissioner of Customs (CESTAT Bangalore)
The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Bangalore Bench, set aside the penalty imposed on a Customs Broker under the Customs Broker Licensing Regulations, 2018 (CBLR, 2018), holding that there was no admissible evidence establishing failure to exercise due diligence or knowledge of the alleged illegal export of sugar in the guise of raw rice.
The proceedings originated from allegations that the Customs Broker had abetted an exporter in attempting to export sugar by misdeclaring it as raw rice. Based on an offence report forwarded by Customs, Tuticorin, a show cause notice was issued under the CBLR, 2018, and the adjudicating authority subsequently held that the broker had violated Regulations 10(d), 10(e), and 10(n), imposing a penalty.
The Customs Broker contended that it had processed documents submitted by the exporter in good faith after obtaining KYC documents and filing the shipping bill based on the information provided. The Branch-in-Charge stated that the exporter had represented that the consignment consisted of raw rice and that previous shipping documents had been verified. The appellant had also appointed an additional surveyor and deployed staff to supervise the export process. It was explained that the personnel involved had been counting bags and had no reason to suspect the presence of sugar because the gunny bags bore identical markings.
