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2021 (1) TMI 818 - AT - CustomsRevocation of Customs Broker License - forfeiture of security deposit - whether the customs broker has failed to follow the Regulations CBLR, 2013 & CBLR, 2018 and whether the same should entail in the revocation of the license and forfeiture of security deposit in addition to imposition of penalty? - HELD THAT:- In the instant case the employees of the appellant’s firm have accepted the documents on behalf of the seven importers and filed a number of check lists in a short span; the customs broker in his statement before D.R.I has accepted the documents from Shri Santhosh Pandey even when he told them that bank related documents and authority letter could be given before carting the goods; they did not receive any documents in original; they have not cross-verified the documents submitted with any reasonable means; they never spoke to or interacted with any of the IEC holders. Where the custom Broker prima facie has some documents; the person who handed over the documents to the Broker is available; it is not alleged that the exporters were fictitious and the fraudulent persons used the high security IDs and passwords of departmental officers, the omission on the part of the Customs Broker becomes a bit less serious. Under the circumstances, there was lapse on the part of the Customs Broker, the same is not at the root of the occurrence of the fraud - the Customs Broker erred inasmuch as non-verifying the antecedents of the exporters and has not obtained authorization. However, the punishment meted out to the Custom Broker should be commensurate with such omission. It is a settled law that penalty should be proportionate to the offence committed. It would be too harsh to revoke the license of the Customs Broker and to leave the right to livelihood of the Customs Broker as well as his employees to the wind. The license has been under the orders of revocation / suspension for more than two years. Under the circumstances, the customs broker has been sufficiently penalized. For the commission of an offence on the part of the customs broker, the livelihood of many other employees of the firm cannot be put to jeopardy - the ends of justice would be met if the security deposited is forfeited and penalty imposed is upheld, while setting aside the order as far as the revocation of the license is concerned. Appeal allowed in part.
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