P.T. GOLD COIN SPECIALITIES Vs. CC

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE present application, filed by the appellants, prays for stay of operation of the impugned order of the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals). Having examined the records and heard both sides, we propose to dispose of the appeal itself finally at stage. Therefore, we reject the stay application and proceed to deal with the appeal.

(2.) THE appeal is against the order of the lower appellate authority, loading the declared value of the goods by 18% under Rule 5 of the Customs (Valuation) Rules, 1988. The adjudicating authority has loaded the declared value by 20% under the said Rules, which the lower appellate authority has reduced marginally to 18%. The findings recorded by both the lower authorities are concurrent except in respect of the extent of value loadability. In the present appeal, the principal challenge against the decision of the authorities below is that, after having found no relationship between the foreign supplier and the Indian buyer, the authorities ought not to have pressed into service the provisions of Sub -rule (3) of Rule 4 of Customs Valuation Rules, 1988. The appellants have urged that it was incumbent on the authorities to examine firstly the question of acceptability of the transaction value under other provisions of Rule 4 and then, if found unacceptable, to examine the question under Rule 5. In the case on hand, both the authorities applied Rule 4(3) (a) and (b) in the determination of assessable value of the goods, as if the Indian buyer, namely, the present appellants were related to the foreign supplier, namely, M/s. P.T. Gold Coin Specialities, Indonesia. The contention of the appellants is that this method adopted by the authorities below is patently incompatible with their finding that the appellants were not related to the Indonesian supplier.

(3.) LEARNED Consultant Shri M.S. Kumaraswamy for the appellants has reiterated the above grounds. Ld. JDR Shri C. Mani has reiterated the findings of the Commissioner (Appeals).