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2007 (6) TMI 220

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..... ur notice prima facie, wilful and deliberate disobedience on the part of the Assistant Commissioner ot Customs (Import) to the law laid down by this Court in the case of Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. v. Union of India, 1992 (59) E.L.T. 505 (Bom), Ocean Centers v. Union of India, 2005 (180) E.L.T. 313 (Bom.); and in the case of Noble Society v. Union of India, 2005 (187) E.L.T. 438 (Bom) wherein this Court has laid down and followed from time to time that during the period of limitation available for filing an appeal, no coercive action should be taken to enforce the order. The Assistant Commissioner of Customs (Import) in breach of the law laid down by this Court, which was specifically brought to its notice, encashed bank guarantee worth Rs. .....

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..... rt in the State and intiate proceedings in direct violation of the law so declared under Art. 215, every High Court shall be a Court of record and shall have all the powers of such a court including the power to punish for contempt of itself. Under Art. 226, it has plenary power to issue orders or writs for the enforcement of the fundamental rights and for any other purpose to any person or authority including inappropriate cases any Govt. within its territorial jurisdiction. Under Art. 227 it has jurisdiction over all Courts and Tribunals throughout the territories in relation to which it exercises jurisdiction. It would be anomalous to suggest that a tribunal over which the High Court has superintendence can ignore the law declared by tha .....

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..... upreme Court has equal application so far as pronouncements by the High Courts are concerned. Grover, J. observed (at page 2209)- "The judgment which was delivered did not merely declare the promotions granted to the respondents in the writ petition filed at the previous stage as unconstitutional but also laid down in clear and unequivocal terms that the distribution of appointments, posts or promotions made in the implementation of the communal policy was contrary to the constitutional guarantee of Article 16. The law so declared by this court was binding on the respondent State and its officers and they were bound to follow it whether a majority of the present respondents were parties or not in the previous petition. .....

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..... erlying the law of contempt. The analogy of the inferior court's disobedience to the specific order of a superior court also suggests that his conduct falls within the purview of the law of contempt. Just as the disobedience to a specific order of the court undermines the authority and dignity of the court in a particular case, similarly any deliberate and mala fide conduct of not following the law laid down in the previous decision undermines the constitutional authority and respect of the High Court. Indeed, while the former conduct has repercussions on an individual case and on a limited number of persons, the latter conduct has a much wider and more disastrous impact. It is calculated not only to undermine the constitutional authority a .....

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..... e earlier expositiion of law by the High Court having been pointed out and attention being pointedly drawn to that legal position, in utter disregard of that position, proceedings are initiated, it must be held to be a wilful disregard of the law laid down by the High Court and would amount to civil contempt as defined in S. 2 (b) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971. 10. The respondents as directed by us have deposited amount of Rs. 14,33,000/- with the Prothonotary and Senior Master of this Court and also filed an affidavit duly affirmed by Ms. Reena Shetty, Assistant Commissioner of Customs (Imports) tendering her unconditional apology along with copy of the Standing Order No. 7967, dated 26th April, 2007 with covering letter issued by .....

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..... be initiated during the period prescribed in the said circular. It is observed that some officers are enforcing the Bank Guarantees within the appeal period. This matter had come before the Hon'ble Mumbai High Court in the case of Ocean Driving Center Ltd v. Union of India - 2005 (180) E.L.T. 313 (Bom), Noble Asset Company Ltd. v. Union of India - 2005 (187) E.L.T. 438 (Bom) and M/s. Mahindra Mahindra Ltd v. Union of India - 1992 (59) E.L.T. 505 (Bom.) wherein it has been held that encashment/enforce-ment of Bank Guarantee tantamount to resorting to coercive measures and this should not be done within the appeal period. 2. This instructions should be strictly complied with. Any deviation would be viewed seriously. Sd/ (A.K. Prasad .....

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