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2022 (5) TMI 877 - AT - CustomsRevocation of Customs Broker License - forefeiture of security deposit - levy of penalty - applicability of Regulation 14 of the CBLR, 2018 - allegation of fraud by availing export finance by submission of export bills without making exports - HELD THAT:- It is an admitted fact that the appellant has issued the checklists to the exporters. Even investigation report recorded that ABCCPL owned and controlled by Shri Ashish Jobanputra was exporting cotton since the year 2009 mainly to China under Letter of Credit. Since ABCCPL was a regular exporter exporting goods since 2009, they did not find any difficulty in getting the export documents for availing the fraudulent export credits from the Banks. These documents have been issued by M/s. RSS Shipping Pvt. Ltd. who was operating the CHA licence in the name of M/s. Ramesh Transport Co. (the appellant herein) and M/s. Harin Transport. In para 11 of the impugned order, the only ground on which the Commissioner proceeded against the appellant is that Shri Ramesh Mange had not met or contacted ABCCPL while filing the checklists for export in their name and has thus allowed his CB licence to be used by M/s. RSS Shipping Pvt. Ltd. which was involved in uploading the shipping bill data prepared by them on ICEGATE portal. On the basis of above, the Commissioner concluded that the evidence on record clearly indicated that the Customs Broker was working in a manner to facilitate fraud and had violated the obligation casted upon them under the CBLR,2018. On the same set of evidences, two different findings have been recorded by the Commissioners at Nagpur and Mumbai. Such a discrimination which leads to revocation of licence of one Customs Broker and permits them to operate without any hindrance is nothing but discrimination contrary to Article 14 of the Constitution - Further the procedure for export starts with filing of checklists on ICEGATE portal. If the same is not backed by the proper shipping bill within 15 days, the checklist gets purged. It is not understood how the issuance of checklist by the Customs Broker was a fraud under the Customs Act. Even if the same was an offence under some other Acts, the appellant needs to be tried in terms of those Acts and should not have been inflicted with the punishment sought to be inflicted in terms of CBLR, 2018. Appeal allowed - decided in favor of appellant.
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