TMI Blog1983 (11) TMI 277X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... er valuation of the goods as well as for the confiscation of the goods for violation of ITC Regulations. 3. Taking the valuation aspect first, Shri Nankani briefly explained the facts of the case. The appellants imported 83 cartons of Audio/Video Tapes (National Model) of two types, namely, 480 pieces of National Model E-120 and 4500 pieces of National Model E-180. CIF value for the consignment was given in the bill of entry as US $ 57,675/-. The value per piece declared by the importers in the bill of entry and the appraised value thereof by the Custom House is as indicated below :- Video Tape Model pieces No. of Value declared by the appellants (per piece) Value appraised by the Custom House per piece E-120 480 US $ 10.0 US $ 12.5 E-180 4500 US $ 11.75 US $ 15.0 The order for the goods in question was placed by the appellants on M/s. Jutex Industries Corporation, Hong Kong who ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , 1982 (Invoice dated 15-12-1981). The invoice of M/s. Esquire (Electronics) Ltd., relied upon by the respondent, shows the shipment in June, 1981 (Invoice dated 25-6-1981). 5. Regarding the point raised by Shri Sunder Rajan earlier that the had received reliable information from his Collector that the prices of the goods in question had not come down but were stable at the relevant time, Shri Nankani submitted that this was a very vague assertion and did not in any way affect the imports of the appellants goods. Shri Nankani also tried to prove the bona fide character of the appellants, transactions with reference to quotations exchanged between M/s. Anita International, Osaka (Japan) and M/s. Jutex Industries Corporation of Hong Kong, the latter being the supplier of the goods to the appellants. It was pointed out that M/s. Anita International had supplied E-120 Tapes to M/s. Jutex at US $ 9.55 per piece and E-180 Tapes at US $ 11.21 per piece. In other words, M/s. Jutex made a gain of 45 cents per piece and 54 cents per piece, approximately, with regard to E-120 and L-180 Tapes respectively, from M/s. Anita International of Japan. This represented a margin of profit of just ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... anese origin. The third quotation is in Hong Kong dollars which is for Japanese tapes as offered in Hong Kong. In the said letter Shri Pande has stated : There has been steep fall in the prices of video cassette tapes in the last three months. This has been partly due to the weakness of Yen and partly due to the glut in the production of these cassette tapes in Japan . Shri Sunder Rajan submitted that the telexes enclosed with the letter of Shri Pande showed higher values for the goods imported by the appellants. Further, Shri Sunder Rajan submitted that fall in the prices of video cassette tapes had taken place much later, a fact which had been controverted by the appellants. Shri Sunder Rajan, also introduced for the first time the argument that the appellants had opened their Letter of Credit for the goods in question in March, 1981, and the Department had replied on an invoice dated 25-6-1981. There was, therefore, a nexus between these two dates which, according to Shri Sunder Rajan, supported the stand taken by the Custom House. Shri Sunder Rajan concluded by submitting that proving a case of under valuation was an uphill task but the Custom House had been able to make out a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Hong Kong to the Deputy Collector of Customs, Bombay) we do not think they support the Department s case in any way. They are telex messages exchanged between parties and the quotations contained in the said telex messages have not been correlated with any actual importations made into India at prices mentioned in these messages. Taking the documentary evidence as a whole, we are of the view that the Department has been unable to satisfy us that the appellants resorted to under valuation. While we are inclined to agree with Shri Sunder Rajan that proving a case of under valuation is difficult, we have to go by the evidence and the same produced by the Department is not sufficient to pin down a serious charge like under valuation raised against the appellants. 8. Before parting with discussion of valuation aspect, we would like to make a reference to Shri Sunder Rajan s argument that the appellants had opened their Letter of Credit on 30-3-1981. Shri Sunder Rajan had also contended that prices at that point of time were much higher than those declared in the bill of entry for the goods. We observe that the relevance of the date of opening of the letter of credit in this context w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ol. 3] Raw material, as commonly understood, is used in process of manufacture. Printing machinery will certainly not come under the category of raw material. [T.P. Mukherjee s Law Lexicon, Vol. 2] Any material in its natural form suitable for being manufactured or process into a finished form. [New Webster s Dictionary of the English Language] It is quite clear from the definition of the expression `raw material quoted from the standard books that to be treated as a `raw material , the material or commodity should be in its natural or semi-manufactured state and should be capable of being used for manufacture of finished products. It also follows that `raw material cannot be consumed directly and cannot be sold off the shelf by a store or a shop and consumed directly by the purchaser. As regards the expression `consumer goods , the New Webster s Dictionary of the English Language defines it as follows : Goods, such as clothing and food, which are made for the consumer and are not intended to be used in further production. From the above definitions of the expressions `raw material and `consumer goods it is clear that the contention of the appellan ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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