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TMI Blog2018 (4) TMI 1650X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e are that the respondent arrived on IGI Airport on 24-3-2011 from Singapore and a trolley loaded with several baggages was diverted from the arrival area of the airport to the departure area of the airport with the help of Mr. Mohit Bhandari, Sub-Assistant Commercial Officer of Air India, Shri Kishore Kumar, an employee of the of Air India and the loader Shri Ram Avadh Singh to evade Customs duty by escaping normal customs checks. The tags of the baggages were changed to project as if the passenger had missed flight and as a result thereof the passenger was exiting from the departure area of the airport. However, before the respondent could exit from the airport, he along with imported goods was intercepted by CISF Officers on suspecting t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ision application mainly on the grounds that the steep reduction in the value of the goods, redemption fine, penalty and setting aside of interest liability on the respondent are not supported by any legal provision and any sound reason. 4. A personal hearing was earlier fixed on 29-8-2017. But it was not availed either by the applicant or the respondent. Hence, next hearing was fixed on 8-3-2018 and it was availed by Shri A.S. Hasija, Consultant, on behalf of the respondent who contested the Revenue's revision application for the reasons given in the reply dated 3-6-2014 whose copy was produced during the present hearing also. However, no one appeared for the applicant for the second time and no reason for non-availment of the hearin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... valuation of goods, it is an accepted fact that the respondent did not have any purchase invoices in respect of the imported goods at the time of his arrival in Delhi and as a result the Revenue was compelled to adopt the internet based value for the goods in this case. But while adopting the internet based value the Additional Commissioner has been fair enough to reduce the internet value by 30%, apparently because internet based values are further bargained and discounts upto 30% are generally given by the sellers in Singapore or other countries. However, the Commissioner (Appeals) has questioned the validity of the internet based value in the first place. But at the same time he has accepted the same internet based value after allowing r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... claim is entirely based on the statement of the respondent and it is not corroborated by any other evidence whatsoever. Whereas the value of the goods is to be determined by the quantity, quality and prevalent sale price of the goods in Singapore market during the relevant time and it cannot be determined by the amount of Singapore dollars taken by the respondent from India particularly when arranging of extra amount abroad by the person like the respondent is not a difficult task for smuggling the goods for commercial purpose. From the OIA it is also evident that interest on duty of Customs has been set aside in just one sentence and without giving any proper justification. The Commissioner (Appeals) has only stated that since the goods ar ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... visions of Customs Act and other laws, a very lenient view has been taken while reducing fine and penalty. Reduction in value of the goods and consequent lowering of duty liability cited by the Commissioner (Appeals) in his order to justify drastic reduction in fine and penalty is also not found to have any legitimate basis. Accordingly, considering all the above discussed facts and particularly the modus operendi adopted by the respondent for smuggling of the goods, the Government upholds the redemption fine and penalty imposed by the Additional Commissioner in his order and set aside the Commissioner (Appeals)'s Order in toto.
7. In view of the above discussions, the revision application is allowed. X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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