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2011 (4) TMI 1176 - Commission - CustomsImmunity from fine, penalty and prosecution - Unaccompanied Baggage - attempt to smuggle the goods into India in the guise of unaccompanied baggage - two applicants have fully admitted the demand of duty as made against them in the Show Cause Notice and have also promptly deposited the same, the prayer made by them for granting full immunity from fine, penalty etc. - Held that:- The applicants cannot be said to have acted in a bona fide manner when they visited abroad and purchased goods worth over Rupees two Crores with intent to import the same for their personal use, yet they did not import the goods as their own personal Baggage but entrusted the responsibility to a Freight Forwarder who transshipped the goods from another port in the name of persons clearly unrelated to the two applicants. The covert methods used for transshipping the goods clearly expose the collusion of the applicants in giving effect to their mala fide intent to evade duty. It is evident from the facts and circumstances of the case that the two applicants made an attempt to evade Customs duty by so organizing the imports as to avert direct responsibility for defrauding the Revenue. The Bench therefore holds that in view of gross misdeclaration of the contents and the value of goods in BDFs, the imported goods have been rendered liable for confiscation and the two applicants have also rendered themselves liable to penalty for their act of omission and commission committed in relation to the imported goods. Redemption fine and penalty reduced and immunity granted from in excess amount fixed for this purpose. Full immunity granted from prosecution.
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