Customs, Excise and Gold Tribunal - Mumbai
Adani Exports Ltd. And Gautam Adani vs Commissioner Of Customs And Central ... on 10 March, 2004
Equivalent citations: 2004(169)ELT97(TRI-MUMBAI)
ORDER Jyoti Balasundaram, Member (J)
1. By order No. C-I/496-497/WZB/2003 dated 24.2.2003, the Tribunal set aside the demands raised against Adani Exports Ltd. as time barred, and also set aside the penalties imposed upon the company as well as its director. As a result of this order, the bank guarantee furnished by the appellants for Rs. 55 lakhs was required to be cancelled and returned. Since this was not done, the present miscellaneous application has been filed for directions to the respondents to implement the Tribunal's final order by cancelling and returning the bank guarantee. The matter had come up for hearing on earlier occasions when the bench directed the learned DR to obtain report from the Commissionerate as to why the Tribunal's order was not implemented. Today learned DR raises before us a plea of letter of the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (APPG), Custom House, Goa, which is reproduced below:-
"F.No. S/99-186/2001-Ap. Dated: 9.3.2004 To Shri K.K. Shrivastava, Jt. Departmental Representative, CESTAT, Mumbai.
Sir, Sub: Bank Guarantee of Rs. 55 lakhs executed by M/s. Adam Exports - Reg.
Please refer to our telephonic conversation on the above mentioned subject. The Bank Guarantee of Rs. 55 lakhs was executed by M/s. Adani Exports Ltd., Ahmedabad by way of Gujarat High Court's direction and was kept alive during the pendency of the appeal before the Hon'ble CEGAT. Subsequently, the said Bank Guarantee was ordered to be kept alive by the Hon'ble High Court of Bombay, Panaji Bench, Goa in reference application No. 2/2003 read with Misc. Application No. 537/2003 and 691/2003 respectively. The aforesaid reference application along with Misc. Application filed by the Department was dismissed by the Hon'ble High Court of Bombay, Panaji Bench, Goa on the limitation ground. The department has preferred an SLP against the order of the Hon'ble High Court, Bombay, Panaji Bench and an SLP proposal has already been furnished to the Board on 12.2.2004. Therefore, Bank Guarantee will have to be kept alive during the pendency of the Department's SLP by way of Court order. You are, therefore, requested that the application filed by M/s. Adani Exports Ltd. for direction to return the Bank Guarantee may be dismissed. Yours faithfully, (S.R. LOBO) DY. COMMISSIONER OF CUSTOMS (APPG)"
2. The filing of SLP against the order of the Bombay High Court is not by itself a ground for holding on to the guarantee furnished and in pursuance of the Tribunal's order, in the absence of any stay granted by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, requires to returned. We therefore direct the respondents herein to forthwith cancel and return the bank guarantee furnished by the appellants herein.
3. Report of compliance to be produced before the Tribunal on 30th March, 2004.