Case Law Details
Mohammed Akmam Uddin Ahmed Vs Commissioner Appeals Customs and Central Excise (Delhi High Court)
Delhi High Court held that Court has the power to exercise discretion to waive requirement of pre-deposit of penalty in rare and deserving cases.
Facts- The present Petition has been filed by the Petitioners, inter-alia, challenging the constitutional vires of Section 129E of the Customs Act, 1962 [hereinafter referred to as “the Act”] and seeking a direction to Respondents to admit the Appeal filed by the Petitioners without pre-deposit of the mandatory duty as stipulated in Section 129E of the Act.
The Petitioners have submitted that they belong to poor families and live in Islam Nagar, Hojai, Assam, and are not well-educated youth. In support of their plea, the Petitioners No. 1 and 3 have filed an income certificate dated 13.12.2021 issued by the Office of the Circle Officer, Hojai, Assam, showing an annual income of Rs. 1,00,000/-. The Petitioners further stated that they are earning their livelihood through agriculture and by selling small quantities of Agarwood. The Petitioners have submitted in the Petition that the goods seized by the Customs Authorities were purchased by them, and the bills were attached to the Reply to the Show Cause Notice. The Petitioners have also stated that the goods seized were wrongly assessed at very high market value, and the penalty has been levied based on an incorrect assessment of the goods. The Petitioners have further submitted that their right of Appeal under Section 129E of the Act cannot be exercised as they are not financially sound and hence, unable to pay the mandatory pre-deposit as required to challenge this levy.
Conclusion- Held that the Court has the power to exercise discretion to waive requirement of pre-deposit of penalty in rare and deserving cases where a clear justification is made out for interference. In the present case, no proper calculation has been made for the penalty levied. The penalty imposed on the Petitioners has been imposed based on a provisional valuation. The penalty imposed is therefore without any legal basis and cannot be sustained.
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