Spac Starch Products (India) Private Ltd. Vs Assistant Commissioner of Customs (Madras High Court)
Madras High Court has set aside an order-in-original issued by the Assistant Commissioner of Customs against Spac Starch Products (India) Private Ltd., citing a violation of natural justice principles. The ruling, delivered on June 25, 2025, mandates a fresh consideration of the matter after affording the petitioner a fair hearing.
Spac Starch, a company identifying itself as a leading tapioca exporter, challenged the Customs Department’s order dated November 30, 2023, on the grounds that it had never received a show cause notice or the final order itself. The company stated it only became aware of the order following an alert notice that halted its export operations.
During court proceedings, the Customs Department confirmed that both the show cause notice and the subsequent order were dispatched to an address provided by Spac Starch in its shipping bills. However, these communications were consistently returned as “unserved.”
Counsel for Spac Starch countered this, asserting that the company’s updated and correct address had been formally registered with the Registrar of Companies in Form 18 as early as December 12, 2012. This registered address, “P & C Towers, II Floor, 140, Perundurai Road, Erode, Tamil Nadu – 638 011,” differed from the old address (“No.102, Shiek Dawood Street, Erode, Tamil Nadu – 638 001”) to which the Customs Department had sent its correspondence.
