Important point
In the Case of goods which are warehoused relevant date of taxable event would be the date on which goods are actually removed from warehouse u/s 68 of the customs Act and as such even if at the time when the goods entered territorial warters as also on the date when the goods were stored in bonded warehouse goods were exemplted from dutys if subsequently exemption is withdraws, duly has to be said with reference to relevant dali as per Section 15.

Order

The judgment of the Full Bench of the Bombay High Court reported in 1985 (22) ELT 6441 is called in question in these appeals by special leave before us. The question which arose for consideration before the Bombay High Court related to the levy of customs duty under the provi­sions of the Sea Customs Act.

2. The brief facts on which the Bombay High Court proceeded were that when the goods of the respondents entered the territorial waters of India from the foreign country as also on the day they were stored in the bonded warehouse, they were wholly exempt from payment of basic customs duty under a notification issues by the Central Government Act, 1962. When these goods were sought to be removed from the bonded warehouse, the exemption notification had been rescinded and the exemption granted thereunder was withdrawn.

3. The case of the respondents was that on the day when the goods entered the territotial waters, that is the point of time when the taxable event under Section 12 occurred; and as the duty was nil on that day, therefore the question of paying any duty with reference to a subsequent point of time, nemely, when the goods were removed from the warehouse did not arise.

4. The Bombay High Court following its earlier decision in Shawhney v. Sylavania & Laxman2, decided in favour of the respond­ents and held that as the goods were exempt from payment of tax on the day when they entered the territorial waters no customs duty was payable.

5. In our opinion, this question is no longer resintergra. At least two decisions of this Court, namely, M/s. Bharat Surfactants (Private) Ltd. and Another v. Union of India and Another3, and Dhiraj Lal H. Vohra and Others v. Union of India and Others4, were directly concerned with similar contention that had been raised. Dealing with the same, this Court has in clear terms come to the conclusion that what is relevant is the day on which the bill of entry in respect of goods is presented under Section 46 and in the case of goods which are warehoused the relevant date would be the date on which the goods are actually removed from the warehouse. It is no doubt true that in Bharat Surfactants (supra), this Court did observe that it dis not express any opinion with regard to the soundness of the view taken by the Bombay High Court in Sylvania & Laxman’s case (supra) and in the judgment under appeal but, nevertheless, as we read the said judgment, the conclusion of this Court in Bharat Surfactants was contrary to the view expressed by the Bombay High Court. We do not find that the said decision in Bharat Surfactants can in any way be distinguished from the facts of the present case. Similarly in Dhiraj Lal (supra), the contention raised that the ship had entered the territorial waters on 20th February, 1989 and that was the relevant date for determining the taxability of the imported goods, was rejected. In this connection, it was observed as follows :

“It is clear from a bare reading of these relevant provisions that the due date to calculate the rate of duty applicable to any imported goods shall be the rate and valuation in force, in the case of the goods entered for home consumption under Section 46, is the date on which the bill of entry in respect such goods is presented under that section and in the case of goods cleared from a warehouse under Sec­tion 68, the date on which the goods are actually removed from the warehouse. By operation of the proviso if a bill of entry has been presented before the date of entry inwarcs the bill of entry shall be deemed to have been presented “on the date of such entry inwards” but would be subject to the operation of Sections 46 and 31(1) of the Act. Section 46(1) provides that the importer of any goods, other than goods in­tended for transit or transhipment, shall make entry thereof by pre­senting to the proper officer a bill of entry for home consumption or warehousing in the prescribed from and it may be presented under sub-section (3) thereof