M/S Continental Engines PVT. LTD. vs. Union Of INDIA

CW/5044/2024HC RajasthanGSTCNR RJHC02025539202429 April 2024Bench: PANKAJ MITHAL,SHUBHA MEHTA2 pages

AI SummaryRemanded

Facts

M/s Continental Engines Pvt. Ltd. (the petitioner) filed a writ petition before the Rajasthan High Court. The petitioner's grievance was that applications filed under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962, for amendment of Subject Bills of Entry, had been pending since November 2022. The petitioner also challenged a show-cause notice dated February 27, 2024, issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Imports). The petitioner contended that the show-cause notice was issued for creating a demand based on the petitioner's failure to produce re-assessed Bills of Entry, without first deciding the pending amendment applications. The respondents included various authorities from the Union of India and the State of Rajasthan.

Held

The Court held that the applications filed under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962, for amendment of the Subject Bills of Entry are intrinsically linked to the issue raised in the show-cause notice. The Court directed the respondent No. 3 to decide the applications filed under Section 149 of the Act within four weeks from the date of the order. The Court further observed that the respondents shall first proceed to decide these applications before taking any further action concerning the show-cause notice, considering the interconnectedness of the issues. The petition was disposed of with these directions. No specific finding was given on the validity of the show-cause notice itself, as the primary direction was to decide the pending applications first.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Court should direct the respondent No. 3 (Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Imports)) to decide the applications filed under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962, for amendment of the Subject Bills of Entry. 2. Whether the show-cause notice dated February 27, 2024, issued by the respondent No. 3, which seeks to create a demand due to the petitioner's failure to produce re-assessed Bills of Entry, is valid when the applications for amendment of the original Bills of Entry are still pending. Petitioner's Arguments: The petitioner argued that their applications for amendment of the Bills of Entry have been pending since November 2022, and the respondent authorities have failed to take necessary action. They further contended that issuing a show-cause notice for demand without deciding these pending applications is unjust and premature. Revenue's Arguments: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the respondents.

Sections Cited

Section 149

AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below

Cause title — parties, addresses and appearances

HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 5044/2024 M/s Continental Engines Pvt. Ltd., A-88, Riico Industrial Area, Bhiwadi, Alwar, Rajasthan-301019 Through Its Authorized Signatory Ms. Varsha Chaturvedi D/o Mr. D.c. Gupta, Aged About 38 Years, R/o 397, Lig Colony, Sector 31, Gurugram, Haryana- 122003 ----Petitioner Versus 1. Union Of India, Through The Revenue Secretary, Ministry Of Finance, North Block, New Delhi- 110001 2. The Commissioner Of Customs, Jaipur, Ncr Building, Statue Circle, C-Scheme, Jaipur 302005 3. The Deputy Commissioner Of Customs (Imports), Icd- Concor, Kanakpura, Jaipur 302012 4. The Principal Commissioner Of Central Goods And Services Tax Commissionerate Alwar, A Block, Surya Nagar, Alwar, Rajasthan 301001 5. The Additional Commissioner, Central Goods And Services Tax Commissionerate, Alwar, A Block, Surya Nagar, Alwar, (Rajasthan) 3011001 6. The Superintendent, Central Goods And Services Tax, Range-Xii, Division-C, Alwar Bypass Road, Bhiwadi, Distt. Alwar (Rajasthan) 301019 7. The Assistant Commissioner, Central Goods And Services Tax, Range-Xii, Division-C, Alwar Bypass Road, Bhiwadi, Distt. Alwar (Rajasthan) 301019 8. State Of Rajasthan, Through The Finance Secretary (Revenue), Finance Department, Government Of Rajasthan, 1St Floor, Main Building Government Secretariat, Janpath, Jaipur, Rajasthan 302005 ----Respondents For Petitioner(s) : Mr. Sanjay Jhanwar, Sr. Adv. with Mr. Rahul Lakhwani Mr. Wilson Joy For Respondent(s) : Mr. Sumit Teterwal & Mr. C.S. Sinha for Mr. R.D. Rastogi, ASG Mr. Sandeep Pathak HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE PANKAJ BHANDARI HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE SHUBHA MEHTA

Order

(2 of 2) [CW-5044/2024] 29/04/2024

This petition is filed seeking direction to respondent No.3 to decide the applications filed under Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 (for short ‘the Act’) for amendment of the Subject Bills of Entry.

The third prayer is challenging the show-cause notice dated 27.02.2024. 3. The grievance raised in petition is that the applications are pending since November, 2022 onwards but the needful has not been done. Further, grievance is that without deciding the applications, show-cause notice has been issued for creating the demand on failure of the petitioner to produce the re-assessed Bills of Entry.

Considering the nature of prayer, this petition is disposed of, with a direction to respondent No.3 to decide the applications filed under Section 149 of the Act within four weeks from today.

Considering that pendency of the applications and the issue raised in show-cause notice is inter-connected, there is no doubt that the respondents shall first proceed with to decide the applications.

The present Civil Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of. (SHUBHA MEHTA),J (PANKAJ BHANDARI),J HEENA/196

Reproduced from the public record of the Rajasthan High Court. Verify against the court's own copy before relying on it. Income tax judgments are on bharattax.net.