ORDER
P.S. Bajaj, Member (J)
1. Heard.
2. The entire duty amount of Rs. 51,670/- has already been deposited by the appellants. Even the confiscated goods of the value of the Rs. 2.5 lakhs are still with the Customs authorities. Therefore, the pre-deposit of the penalty amount of Rs. 30,000/- is waived.
3. With the consent of both sides, I proceed to decide the appeal on merits.
4. In this appeal, the appellants have challenged the validity of the impugned order-in-appeal dated 13-2-2002 vide which the Commissioner (Appeals) has affirmed the order-in-original imposing penalty of Rs. 30,000/-and absolute confiscation of the goods i.e. Bulk Drug Amikacin Sulphate of USP-24.
5. The facts are not much in dispute. The appellants imported one consignment of 50 kgs. of Bulk Drug Amikacin Sulphate of the value of Rs. 2,50,339/-. These goods were supplied by M/s. Zhenjiang Chemicals Import & Export Corpn., China, vide invoice dated 19-1-2002. The goods were airlifted from China vide Airway Bill dated 17-1-2002. The appellants, being the importer of those goods, filed the bill of entry for clearance. The goods were examined on 7-2-2002 and the ADC sent samples to CDL, Calcutta. The report of the ADC indicated the samples of all the 10 drugs declared, were not of standard quality as per the report of CDL. The appellants thereafter requested for the re-export of the goods. The appellants also submitted before the Customs authorities that since no payment had been made by them to the supplier, they be allowed to sent back the goods to them. The adjudicating authority on the basis of report of the CDL which was forwarded by ADC, ordered the absolute confiscation of the goods and imposed the penalty, detailed above. The Commissioner (Appeals) has affirmed that order.
6. I have heard both sides and gone through the record. The perusal of the record shows that the goods imported were of USP-24 standard. There is nothing in the report of the CDL that the goods were not of that standard. In fact, the goods were examined not keeping in view the standard of USP-24, but of IP standard. It was natural that the goods of USP-24 standard were not to tally with the IP standard. Therefore, the Bulk Drug Amikacin Sulphate, on the basis of the said report of the CDL, could not be ordered to be confiscated. Moreover, the request of the appellants for re-export of the goods, if according to the Customs authorities these were not of IP standard, should have been allowed under these circumstances, instead of ordering the absolute confiscation and imposition of penalty on the appellants, for no fault of theirs. They exported the goods of a particular standard i.e. USP-24 and not of IP standard.
7. In view of the discussion made above, the impugned order is set aside in toto and the appellants are allowed to re-export the goods, in accordance with law. The appeal of the appellants stands allowed with consequential relief, if any, permissible under the law.