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2022 (12) TMI 482 - AT - CustomsLevy of penalty on the Company as well as on the Director under Section 114(i) of the Customs Act, 1962 - seizure of Red Sandal Wood - illegal export out of India - prohibited goods or not - HELD THAT:- The Appellant is neither a Customs Clearing Agent nor an exporter/importer. The Appellant’s main business activities remain restricted to the booking of empty containers as per the requirement of the exporter and in appropriate cases merely suggested the suitable Clearing Agent to facilitate their export and with this their activities come to an end. The Manager of M/s. Marine Container Services (I) Pvt.Ltd. mentioned in his submission that the said container belongs to Perma Container Line and M/s. Marine Container Services is the agent of M/s.Perma Container Line - the Department proceeded against the Appellant on the ground that they failed to bring forward the real exporter and thereby abetted and connived with the exporter in the attempt of illegal export of prohibited goods. I find that in the present electronic era, procuring orders and conducting business activities online taking advantage of internet facility is a normal phenomenon. The allegation of abetting in the attempted illegal export of prohibited goods are not supported by any direct, corroborative or cogent evidence. The entire proceedings against the Appellants have been framed on the basis of assumption and presumption without conclusively establishing any direct nexus between the Appellants and the exporter. It is also not understood that why the exporter was not traced to bring the entire proceedings to a logical end. It has been held time and again that separate penalty on the company and the Director for the same default should not be imposed. The impugned order is modified to the extent of setting aside of penalty of Rs.5.00 Lakh each imposed under Section 114(i) of the Customs Act, 1962 on M/s.Geotrans Maritime & Logistics Pvt.Ltd. and its Director Shri Tirthankar Chakraborty - Appeal allowed in part.
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