2026-VIL-1855-CESTAT-KOL-CU
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CUSTOMS CESTAT Cases

Customs - Confiscation of legitimate goods under Section 119 of Customs Act, 1962 on allegation that the goods were used as camouflage for concealing contraband elephant tusks - Appellant No. 1, a tea manufacturer and exporter, entrusted its tea consignment to Appellant No. 2, a transporter, and elephant tusks were recovered from the driver's cabin of the intercepted vehicle while the tea was in the rear carrier - Adjudicating authority ordered confiscation of the tea with an option to redeem on payment of redemption fine, which was upheld by the First Appellate Authority - Whether the tea can be confiscated under Section 119 and redemption fine imposed - HELD - The driver, in his statement recorded immediately after the seizure, disclosed the despatcher and the intended recipient without implicating either Appellant. The call records showed communication only between the despatcher, the driver and the intended recipient, with none linking the Appellants to the driver. The Appellants immediately sought provisional release of the tea and furnished the Bank Guarantee, which shows their bona fides. Defects in the E-way Bills and error in the address of the receiver do not form cogent evidence against the Appellants. The Revenue has not brought cogent evidence linking the Appellants with the identified perpetrators, and no case is made out that the tea was dispatched as a guise for movement of the contraband - The confiscation and the redemption fine are set aside, the redemption fine already recovered is to be refunded with interest and the appeals are allowed - Penalty under Section 114 of Customs Act, 1962 on the consignor and the transporter of legitimate goods found in a vehicle carrying contraband elephant tusks - Penalty was imposed on Appellant No. 1, the consignor of tea, and Appellant No. 2, the transporter who arranged the vehicle through a broker, on the allegation that they were involved in the transportation of the tusks recovered from the driver's cabin - Whether penalty under Section 114 can be imposed in the absence of evidence linking the Appellants with the contraband - HELD - The driver was engaged by the owner of the vehicle and not by the Appellants, and no link was established between the Appellants and the driver, the despatcher or the intended recipient of the tusks. No person implicated in the proceedings gave any statement against the Appellants, and the call records did not show any communication of the Appellants with the driver. The Revenue failed to provide cogent evidence linking the Appellants with the alleged perpetrators. Mere discrepancies in the E-way Bills do not constitute evidence of participation in the illicit transportation - The penalties imposed on the Appellants are set aside and the impugned order is set aside in respect of both the Appellants.
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