CARGOMAR Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner M/s. Cargomar, a Customs Broker governed by the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 (hereinafter called 'Act' for short) and Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, 2013 ('Regulations of 2013' for short) has filed this writ petition in this Court on 21/03/2016 aggrieved by the order passed by the Respondent Principal Commissioner of Customs on 16/03/2016 under Regulation 23 of the aforesaid 'Regulations of 2013', prohibiting the petitioner M/s. Cargomar from operating within the jurisdiction of Bangalore Customs Division, with immediate effect and until further orders.

(2.) The learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. B.G. Chidananda Urs has submitted before the Court that the said order of prohibition passed under the non obstante provision of Regulation 23 of the 'Regulations of 2013' deserves to be quashed by this Court as the same has been passed without giving any prior opportunity of hearing to the petitioner and it has virtually deprived the petitioner assessee of its source of livelihood by prohibiting it from operating in the jurisdiction of Respondent Commissioner of Customs, Bangalore Division.

(3.) He has submitted that the allegation of misdeclaration against the petitioner assessee on behalf of the importer, M/s.J.P. Traders, as made in the impugned order that the petitioner deliberately misclassified the goods under CTH 25202090 attracting the rate of duty at 5% as against the appropriate classification under CTH 68090000 attracting duty at the rate of 10% cannot be said to be a mis-declaration on the part of the petitioner, the Customs Broker and such declaration is made by the importer and therefore no offence was committed by the present petitioner to attract the consequence of "prohibition" under Regulation 23 and the impugned order, therefore, deserves to be quashed.