SCHEFIELDS INTERNATIONAL PVT. LTD. Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition is utterly unmeritorious and in abuse of the process. The petitioner exported a consignment of ball pens; claimed duty drawback thereon, was afforded the concession; but, the foreign buyer did not ultimately make payment in respect of the consignment. The petitioner covered a substantial part of the export loss since the foreign transaction was guaranteed for payment by the Export Credit Guarantee Corporation.

(2.) Upon the Customs authorities discovering that the export consignment on which duty drawback was claimed by the petitioner had not been paid for by the foreign buyer, the duty drawback was sought to be rolled back. The petitioner protested before the assessing authority and failed. Surprisingly, the petitioner's appeal succeeded. The department carried the appellate order by way of a revision and the revisional authority, being a Joint Secretary to the Union Government, set aside the appellate order and restored the order of the assessing officer.

(3.) Two grounds have been canvassed on behalf of the petitioner that in view of Section 122A(2) of the Customs Act, 1962 the revisional authority was obliged to grant the adjournment that the petitioner had sought since the petitioner was entitled to at least three adjournments in course of the proceedings; and, that upon the payment due from the foreign buyer being substantially recovered by the petitioner from ECGC, there was no question of the duty drawback being disallowed.