Blow Plast Industries Vs Commissioner of Customs (CESTAT Chennai)
The appeal before the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Chennai concerned the denial of concessional customs duty under Notification No. 10/2008-Cus dated 15.01.2008 for imports claimed to be originating from Singapore under the India–Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).
The appellant had imported HDPE Granules declared under a Bill of Entry dated 24.10.2015 and claimed concessional basic customs duty on the strength of a valid Certificate of Origin issued by the competent authority in Singapore. During examination, Customs officers noted that the goods were packed in plain bags without marks or numbers indicating the country of origin or manufacturer. On this basis, the adjudicating authority denied the concessional benefit, holding that in the absence of marks and numbers, the goods could not be correlated with the Certificate of Origin. The goods were assessed at the normal rate of duty, which the importer paid under protest. This view was upheld by the Commissioner (Appeals), who also held that the Certificate of Origin was deficient since it recorded packing in plain bags.
Before the Tribunal, the appellant contended that the Certificate of Origin itself clearly stated that the goods were packed in plain bags and that all other particulars—such as quantity, weight, value, invoice details, and manufacturer declaration—matched exactly with the commercial documents. It was argued that the issuing authority had certified the origin after due verification and that the certificate had neither been cancelled nor recalled. The appellant emphasized that Notification No. 10/2008-Cus did not impose any condition requiring country of origin or manufacturer details to be physically marked on the packages. The denial of benefit, solely on presumptions arising from plain packaging, was therefore contended to be contrary to law.
