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2015 (12) TMI 717 - AT - CustomsImposition of penalty on a person treating as Importer - import of goods without the knowledge of such person - whether appellant is liable to penalty and whether he should be held to be the importer of consignments of zinc Flux Skimming's for which two bills of entry were filed by CHA M/s. R.N. Lal & Bros - Held that:- appellant has denied to have imported the consignments for which bills of entry were filed by the CHA. The signatures on the bills of entry have been found to be not made by the appellant. Even the CHA who filed bills of entry has not implicated the appellant to have authorized him for filing the impugned bills of entry. There are few statements of Sh. Nanda Ganguly, Sh. Uttam Swarckar, a Sircar holder of CHA , Sh. Sunil Agarwal, a metal Trdev and Md. Fazlul Hoque to the effect that appellant was making certain enquires regarding transportation & importation of zinc Flux skimmings. Penalty under Sec - 112 of the Customs Act 1962 can be imposed only upon on importer or any person who claims himself to be an importer. Appellant has neither filed any bill of entry nor is he claiming the ownership of the imported goods. Circumstantial evidences discussed by the adjudicating authority only raise a suspicion about the appellant but it is a settled position of law now that suspicion howsoever grave can not take the place of an evidence. There is no evidence on record that appellant has signed the bills of entry and has given all the documents personally to the Customs House agent or any other person. Penalty can not be imposed upon the appellant on the basis of suspicion created by presumption & surmises by holding him to be the importer. - Decided in favour of appellant.
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