Case Details: VRS Foods Ltd. vs. Additional Commissioner Grade-2 (2025) 35 Centax 178 (All.)
Judiciary and Counsel Details
- Piyush Agrawal, J.
- Shri Suyash Agarwal, for the Petitioner.
- Shri Ravi Shankar Pandey, learned ACSC, for the Respondent.
Facts of the Case
The assessee sold battery scrap to a consignee in Ghaziabad. For weighment, the truck carrying goods was sent to Balaji Dharmkanta, for which the assessee issued a gate pass. However, the truck driver went for weighment without taking the gate pass. Upon return, the truck was intercepted, and an order for detention was passed as no documents accompanied the goods. A show cause notice was issued for the same, to which the assessee replied. Unsatisfied with the reply, the authority passed an order under section 129(3) and levied a penalty. Aggrieved by the same, the assessee preferred an appeal to the Additional Commissioner, Grade – 2 (Appeals) IV, Ghaziabad. However, the appeal was partly allowed, and the penalty was reduced to Rs. 1,43,100/-. The matter then reached the Allahabad High Court.
High Court Held
The High Court held that at the time of interception, no document was available. Only after passing the seizure order, documents were produced. The assessee contended that no e-way bill or documents were required for goods sent for weighment within 20 km. However, the delivery challan was required to accompany the goods, which was produced after the seizure of the goods. The argument of the assessee that no specified documents were required to be accompanied by the goods during transit for weighment cannot be accepted. If such an argument is accepted, it will provide a handle to produce the documents at a later stage of interception/seizure and to take shelter that the goods were sent for weighment, which in turn will frustrate the very purpose of section 129 of the Act. Therefore, the action of detention and penalty was lawful, and no interference was warranted.
