RAJ EXPORTS Vs. CENTRAL WAREHOUSING CORP

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition was previously disposed of by an order dated 1-3-2011 in view of the fact that substantial grievance of the petitioners came to be resolved during the pendency of the petition. With respect to the petitioners' grievance against the Customs Department regarding non-issuance of duty remission certificate, the court noticed that the Customs Department had not raised any demand of duty on goods destroyed during cyclone. On such basis, the petition was disposed of. While so doing, the court granted liberty to the petitioners to approach the court in case any difficulty arises in future in respect of any demand of customs duty that may be raised by the Customs Department in relation to the goods destroyed during the cyclone. After disposal of the petition, the Customs Department issued a show-cause notice dated 12-4-2011 demanding customs duty, interest and penalty upon which the petitioners filed MCA No.1635/2011 and sought revival of the petition. Such prayer was granted by an order dated 9-9-2011. That is how the petition came up for hearing before us once again.

(2.) The counsel for the petitioners pressed for the following reliefs:-

(3.) Such prayers arise in following factual background. The petitioner No.1 is a registered partnership firm. The petitioner No.2 is one of its partners. The petitioners had imported 4400 Metric Tonnes of caustic soda flakes in the year 1995. Such goods were warehoused in the godowns maintained by respondent No.1 Central Warehousing Corporation ('CWC', for short). There were disputes between the petitioners and the Customs Department respondent No.3 due to which clearance of goods was not permitted. With respect to details of such disputes, we are not directly concerned. Suffice it to note that the petitioners succeeded in such legal battle before the Apex Court when by an order dated 21-1-1997, the Apex Court granted permission to clear the goods in following terms:-