Vibhu Bakhru, J

1. Belgium is known for its chocolates amongst other things. And, Guylian is a renowned brand of Belgium chocolates, which are sold in several countries. As coveted as these chocolates may be, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (hereinafter referred to as the ‘FSSAI’) has found these chocolates to be non-compliant with the Food Safety Standards Act, 2006 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Act’) and the Regulations made thereunder. The petitioner being aggrieved on account of non-clearance of these chocolates, has filed the present petition inter alia seeking a direction to the respondents to clear and deliver the consignments imported by the petitioner.

2. The petitioner had imported assorted chocolates manufactured by Chocolatier Guylian N.Y. weighing approximately 4000 kgs. These chocolates were essentially of 20 different types. Whereas, four types of the said chocolates were cleared, FSSAI had, by its letter dated 05.05.2014, refused to grant a no-objection certificate to the remaining 16 types of chocolates. According to FSSAI, eight types of chocolates were found to be non-compliant with the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Label