Assessee claims that custom authorities in grave abuse of Section 17 of the Customs Act, 1962, did not clear the goods even after producing Bill of Entry

HIGH COURT OF TRIPURA
AGARTALA
WP(C)No.110 of 2021

M/s Delwara Steel Industries Private Limited,
registered office at Netaji Subhash Road, Near RCC, 
Agartala-799001
represented by Shri Subham Acharjee, 
son of Shri Manik Acharjee, Village-Patunnagar,
P.O. Durjyaynagar, P.S. Airport, Agartala-799009,
District : Tripura West, Director of M/s Delwara Steel 
Industries Private Limited.
----Petitioner(s)

Versus

1. Union of India,
represented by the Secretary of Revenue,
North Block, New Delhi-110001

2. The Assistant Commissioner,
Agartala Customs Division, Bardowali,
Agartala, Tripura-799003

3. The Superintendent of Customs,
Agartala Land Customs Station, 
Agartala, Tripura-799003
---- Respondent(s)

For Petitioner(s) : Mr. N. Dasgupta, Adv.
Mr. T.K. Deb, Adv.

For Respondent(s) : Mr. Biswanath Majumder, CGC.
Mr. P. Datta, Adv.

Date of hearing : 31.03.2021

Date of delivery of 
Judgment & Order : 26.04.2021

Whether fit for 
reporting : NO.

BEFORE
HON‟BLE MR. JUSTICE S. TALAPATRA

Judgment & Order

The petitioner is a company, incorporated under the Companies Act. The petitioner is carrying on business of importing Galvanized Steel Sheets in coil from Bangladesh through Land Customs Stations in Tripura for manufacturing steel products. The petitioner had imported Galvanized Steel Sheets in coil weighing 14.890 matric tons from Bangladesh by the Bill of Entry No.659298/INP/AGT-LC/2020-21 dated 17.12.2020 through the Agartala Land Customs Station. The petitioner had claimed to have submitted all requisite documents but the respondent custom authorities in grave abuse of Section 17 of the Customs Act, 1962, did made no assessment for clearance of the goods. Even, no reason for such inaction has been disclosed. Under South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) arrangement, the Department of Revenue, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has issued notification dated 09.11.2011 allowing nil duty of customs on most of the goods imported from Bangladesh under SAFTA. Galvanized Steel Sheet in coil also attracts no custom duty. As no order disclosing the reasons for warehousing the imported goods has been passed, the petitioner had been left remediless. The clearance of goods should have been allowed following the provisions under Sections 17 or 18 of the Customs Act, 1962 either accepting the concessional rate of duty as claimed by the petitioner under self-assessment or rejecting it by doing re-assessment under Section 17 of the said Act. 

2. Section 17 of the Customs Act, 1962 provides the procedure for assessment of duty. The proper officer may verify the entries made under Section 46 or Section 50 of the Customs Act and may allow the self-assessment of the duty for the goods. The verification by the proper officer shall primarily be done on the basis of risk evaluation. The proper officer may require the importer to produce any document or information and on such requisition, the importer shall produce such documents or information. If it is found on verification, examination or testing of the goods or otherwise, the self-assessment as done was not done correctly, the proper officer may without any prejudice to any other action which may be taken under the Customs Act, reassess the duty leviable on such goods.

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