IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

RESERVED ON

04.01.2022

PRONOUNCED ON

08.06.2022

CORAM

THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE C.SARAVANAN

W.P.NO.20249 OF 2021

AND

W.M.P.NO.21510 OF 2021

1.Chandrasegaram Vijayasundaram

2.Vijayasundaram Mahalakshmi

3.Chandrasegaram Rajaluxmi

4.Somasundaram Chandrasegaram

5.Raveendhiran Shanthadevi

...Petitioners

Vs.

1.O/o. Principal Commissioner (Revision

Application) and Ex Officio Addl.

Secretary to Govt. of India,

Ministry of Finance, Department of

Revenue, 8^th Floor, Centre – 1,

World Trade Centre, Cuffe Parade,

Mumbai – 400 005.

2.The Principal Commissioner of Customs

Commissionerate – I,

Chennai Airport and Aircargo

Complex, New Custom House,

Meenambakkam, Chennai – 600 027.

3.The Joint Commissioner of Customs,

(Adjudication – Air)

Commissionerate – I,

Chennai Airport and Aircargo

Complex, New Customs House,

Meenambakkam, Chennai – 600 027.

4.The Assistant Commissioner of Customs

(Preventive – Refunds)

Commissionerate – I,

Chennai Airport and Aircargo

Complex, New Customs House,

Meenambakkam, Chennai – 600 027.

...Respondents

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Prayer : Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the

Constitution of India, for issuance of a Writ of Certiorarified

Mandamus, calling for the records of the first respondent herein

and connected with order No.165-169/2021-Cus (SZ) ASRA Mumbai

dated 14.07.2021 in F.No.380/59 – 63/B/SZ2018-RA/3716 and quash

the same and direct the office of the second and fourth

respondents to process and cause refunds of the fine and penalty

amount collected which is the subject matter of applications in

F.Nos.16, 17, 18, 19 and 20/2018 (Prev.Refunds) on the file of

the fourth respondent herein.

For Petitioner

:

Mr.B.Satish Sundar

For Respondents

:

Mr.M.Santhanaraman

Senior Standing Counsel.

O R D E R

The petitioners have challenged the impugned order dated

14.07.2021 passed by the first respondent, Revisionary Authority

under Section 129 DD of the Customs Act, 1962.

2. By the impugned order, the first respondent, Revisionary

Authority has disposed of the revision application filed by the

Commissioner of Customs, Chennai and has partly reversed the

order passed by the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) vide Order

in Appeal No C.Cus.1.No.69-73/2018 dated 27.04.2018.

3. The petitioners herein are members of the same family.

The first and second petitioners are the husband and wife

respectively. The third and fourth petitioners are the parents

of the first petitioner while the fifth petitioner is the

paternal aunt of the first petitioner.

4. These petitioners are Srilankan nationals based in

Colombo. They arrived at the Chennai Airport on 06.05.2017 along

with two minor children of the first and second petitioners.

All the petitioners were wearing 1594 kgs of gold jewelries

valued at Rs.43,95,854/- .

5. It appears that they attempted to walk through the green

channel along with two minor children wearing 1594 kgs of gold

jewelries without making declaration before the Customs

Officers. Apart from the jewelries, the first petitioner had

also purchased about 112 bottles of liquor valued at

Rs.1,50,000/-.

6. The officers of Air Customs Department intercepted them

and found that there was an attempt to smuggle liquor beyond the

permissible limit. It was further found that these petitioners

https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/

along with two minor children were wearing jewelries weighing

about 1594 kgs and therefore the jewelries and the liquor

bottles were seized. Subsequently, a show cause notice under

Section 124 of the Customs Act, 1962 was issued to them on

02.11.2017, to show cause as to why:-

i) the five nos. of gold bangales and two nos.

of gold chains, totally weighing 3871 gms and

totally valued at Rs.9,90,236/- and the 24

bottles of Chivas Regal