BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM LTD. Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Mr. R.K. Sanghi, learned counsel for the Petitioner has placed before the Court a copy of Circular No. 1053/02/2017-CX, issued by the Central Board of Excise and Customs ('CBEC') dated 10th March, 2017, which is titled : 'Master Circular on Show Cause Notice, Adjudication and Recovery reg.' Para 9.3 of the said Circular deals with 'Call-Book Cases.' These are cases "which cannot be adjudicated immediately due to certain specified reasons and adjudication is to be kept in abeyance." One of the categories mentioned therein is: "in which the Department has gone in appeal to the appropriate authority."

(2.) In the present case, it is not in dispute that against the judgment of this Court in Mangli Impex Ltd. v. Union of India - 2016 (335) E.L.T. 605 (Del.), which was a batch of cases, which included WP(C) No. 225/2014 filed by the Petitioner herein, SLPs have been filed in the Supreme Court in which leave has been granted and a stay has been ordered of the said judgment dated 3rd May, 2016 of this Court. Therefore, the petitioner's case falls within Clause 1 of para 9.3 of the Master Circular.

(3.) The provocation for the Petitioner to file the present petition is that soon after the judgment of this Court, Notification No. 61-2016-Customs (NT), dated 4th May, 2016 was issued by the Department of Revenue empowering the officer of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence ('DRI') to adjudicate the Show Cause Notice ('SCN') issued to the Petitioner on 3rd April, 201 This was done purportedly to overcome the defects pointed out by this Court in its judgment in Mangli Impex Ltd. v. Union of India (supra). Mr. Sanghi states that this notification is also under challenge in the present writ petition.