JASRAJ JETHAMAL Vs. ASSISTANT COLLECTOR OF CUSTOMS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these petitions, the question which requires determination is whether export duty leviable under the Notification issued on 26th June 1973 and published in Extraordinary Gazette dated 26th June 1973 could be levied on goods in respect of which shipping bills had been submitted on the same day, i.e. 26th June 1973, which were verified by the Customs Authorities and were cleared for transport on that day.

(2.) IT is an admitted fact that the Central Government, in exercise of its powers conferred by Sub -section (1) of Section 25 of the Customs Act, 1962, has issued a Notification, whereby for 'raw wool', 25% ad valorem export duty was fixed. It is the case of the petitioners in these petitions that shipping bills were presented before the proper Officer on 26th June 1973 and as no export duty was payable on the export of goods covered by the shipping bills, the concerned Officer accepted the same and the goods were allowed clearance by him for export. Thereafter, the Assistant Collector of Customs had issued notices demanding export duty in regard to the bills of raw wool which were exported by the shipping bills dated 26th June 1973. In these petitions, it has been contended that as the shipping bills were presented on 26th June 1973, no export duty was required to be paid by the petitioners.

(3.) FURTHER , this issue is decided in the case of Gangadhar Narsinghdas Agarwal v. P.S. Thrivikraman and Anr. - AIR 1973 SC 350. The Court considered the provisions of Sections 16, 39, 50 and 51 of the Customs Act and held that under Section 16 of the Act, the date of presentation of a shipping bill is the relevant date for determination of rate of duty and tariff valuation applicable to export goods. Under the proviso to Section 16 of the Act, however, there is a fictional date for determination of such duty. The fiction is introduced by providing for the date of entry outwards of the vessel to be relevant date in case where the shipping bill has been presented before the date of entry outwards of the vessel The date of entry outwards of the vessel is the order made under Section 38 of the Act, by which the proper Officer grants permission for entry outwards to such vessel.