CESTAT Quashes Penalty for Ship Chandler’s Revocation: Non-Violation of Customs Act, Section 89

P. J. Johnson & Sons Ship Chandlers & Engineers Vs Commissioner of Customs (CESTAT Bangalore) Introduction: In a landmark decision, the Customs, Excise, Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in Bangalore quashed a penalty levied against P. J. Johnson & Sons Ship Chandlers & Engineers. The Tribunal maintained there was no violation of Section 89 of the Customs Act, upending the original verdict to revoke their permission to operate as ship chandlers. Analysis: The penalty was imposed following an incident involving the export of 2,00,000 3-ply non-woven masks to the Philippin...