Delhi High Court
Commissioner Of Customs vs Sh. Mahender Pal Singh on 8 November, 2019
$~24
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
% Date of decision: 08.11.2019
+ CUSAA 49/2018
COMMISSIONER OF CUSTOMS ..... Appellant
Through: Mr. Harpreet Singh, Sr. Standing
counsel for appellant with Ms.Suhani
Mathur, Adv.
versus
SH. MAHENDER PAL SINGH ..... Respondent
Through: None.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VIPIN SANGHI
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV NARULA
SANJEEV NARULA, J. (Oral)
CM APPL. 11094/2018 (Delay)
1. By this application the applicant seeks condonation of delay of 48 days in
filing the present appeal. For the reasons stated in the application, the delay
is condoned.
2. The application stands disposed of in the aforesaid terms.
CUSAA 49/2018
3. The question urged by the appellant in the appeal is as under:-
"Whether the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate
Tribunal (CESTAT) was justified and correct in law in passing
an order of remand to the original adjudicating authority to first
decide the issue of jurisdiction, after decision of the Supreme
court in Civil Appeal preferred against the decision of Delhi
High court in Mangli Impex Limited v. Union of India 2016
(335) ELT 605 (Del.)"
4. No one appears on behalf of the respondent, despite service of notice
being effected by way of substitution.
5. It is submitted, at the outset, by the learned counsel for the appellant that
in the identical circumstances, where a similar issue was sought to be urged,
this Court had passed an order in Commissioner of Customs (General) vs.
SAP India Pvt. Ltd., CUSAA 40/2018 and other connected matters decided
on 02.04.2018.
6. The Court had then directed as follows:-
"Accordingly, the impugned order challenged in these
appeals, remanding the matter to the adjudicating authority to
await the judgment of the Supreme Court in the appeal
preferred against the decision in Mangli Impex Limited vs.
Union of India 2016 (335) ELT 605 (Del) is set aside.
The appeals preferred before the Tribunal are restored to
their original position. The Tribunal would decide the appeals
on merits including the question of jurisdiction of the officer of
the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence who had issued show
cause notices. The said issue would be examined by the
Tribunal without being influenced by the decision of the Delhi
High Court in the case of Mangli Implex Limited (supra). We
clarify that we have not expressed any opinion on merits of the
appeals or on the procedure that the Tribunal should adopt and
follow.
Question of law is accordingly answered. The appeals
are disposed of in the aforesaid terms. There would be no order
as to costs."
7. Similar orders have been passed in several other decisions of this Court
including Forech India Pvt. Ltd v. Commissioner of Customs Inland
Container Depot, Tughlakabad, New Delhi, CUS.A.A. No. 67/2017,
decided on 13.12.2017 and Vipul Overseas Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Commissioner of
Customs & Ors., CUSAA No.57 & 58 /2017, decided on 20.11.2017.
Following the above decisions, the impugned order is hereby set aside and
the matter is remitted to the CESTAT, which shall proceed to examine and
decide the merits of the appeal. The respondent/assessee's right to contend
that the show cause notice issued in this case were legally untenable, in view
of the decision of this Court in Mangli Impex (supra), are kept intact. In
other words, the Tribunal may hear the parties on the merits of the case as
well as with respect to the issue of jurisdiction, if necessary, on account of
Mangli Impex (supra) and record separate findings.The findings with
respect to the lack of jurisdiction, if any, based on the reasoning in Mangli
Impex (supra), would be subject to the final outcome of the proceedings in
the Supreme Court. The Court, at the same time, like in the other cases,
expresses no opinion on the merits or procedure that the Tribunal should
adopt and follow.
8. The Tribunal is directed to issue reasonable notice to the assessees for
hearing the appeal before it.
9. The appeal is partly allowed in the above terms.
SANJEEV NARULA, J
VIPIN SANGHI, J
NOVEMBER 08, 2019/Pallavi
