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RAJA BASU CHOWDHURY
Bangari Bhola – Appellant
Versus
Union of India – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
(Raja Basu Chowdhury, J.) :
1. Affidavit of service filed in Court today be kept with the record. The present writ petition has been filed, inter alia, praying for quashing the seizure of the goods of the petitioner effected vide inventory cum seizure list dated 6th February, 2024. The petitioner claims to be involved in the business of trading in areca nuts (hereafter referred to as “the goods”) throughout the State of West Bengal. The petitioner in usual course of business dealings and transactions had procured a total quantity of 5 metric tons of the goods from a supplier based in Imphal, Manipur, under three separate invoices all dated 5th February, 2024. The value of aforesaid consignment was Rs.34,16,765/-(Rupees Thirty Four Lakh Sixteen Thousand Seven Hundred and Sixty Five). According to the petitioner, the aforesaid goods were dispatched from Imphal to Kolkata under cover of separate e-weigh bills all, dated 5th February, 2024 and were booked on an Indigo Airlines Flight from Imphal to Kolkata. Incidentally, upon arrival of the said goods at the Netaji Subash Chandra International Airport, Kolkata (hereinafter referred to as the “said airport”) on 5th February, 2
Jurisdictional authority under the Customs Act is exclusive to designated officers for specific areas, invalidating unauthorized actions.
The court established that jurisdiction for customs seizures is determined by statutory notifications, and reasonable belief is sufficient for seizure under the Customs Act.
Customs Officers can seize goods within their jurisdiction based on reasonable belief of smuggling, even if formalities are completed outside that jurisdiction.
The court emphasized that interference at the stage of issuance of show cause notice should be rare and not in a routine manner, and the availability of alternative remedy should be considered before....
No requirement in the Act or Rules, nor do the principles of natural justice and fair play require that the witnesses whose statements were recorded and relied upon to issue the show-cause notice, ar....
A writ petition challenging seizure under the Customs Act may be considered non-maintainable if a related and previously adjudicated matter on jurisdictional grounds remains unresolved.
The court validated the customs authority's seizure of goods based on reasonable suspicion, upholding the impossibility of judicial review on the sufficiency of the officer's reasons.
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