Legal principle

The power to amend the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 — and hence to change the tariff classification of goods from one Chapter Heading to another — vests in the Central Government alone under Section 11A, while the DGFT's powers under the FTDR Act, 1992 and the Foreign Trade Policy extend only to amending the policy and prohibiting or restricting imports, not to reclassifying goods (a view the court expressed as prima facie at the ad-interim stage).

Court decision

The court made only an interim determination, in favour of the petitioners: finding a strong prima facie case, it granted ad-interim relief staying the operation of Notification No. 02/2025-26 dated 02.04.2025 in both writ petitions until further orders, and directed that the petitioners be entitled to provisional release of their imported Roasted Areca Nuts on furnishing a bond in the format required by the Customs Department, with no other conditions imposed; the Bills of Entry were to remain provisional till final disposal. The Customs Department was allowed to be impleaded as Respondent No. 3, replies were ordered by 4 November 2025, and the matters were listed for 13 November 2025.

Facts

Two writ petitioners (Indu Shekhar and Tabani Javed) imported Roasted Areca Nuts and challenged DGFT Notification No. 02/2025-26 dated 2 April 2025, which changed the classification of Roasted Areca Nuts from Chapter Heading 20081920 to Chapter Heading 08028090, as ultra vires Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution. The notification was issued by the DGFT invoking Section 3 read with Section 5 of the FTDR Act, 1992 read with paragraphs 1.02 and 2.01 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 (as amended). The same notification was also under challenge before the Madras High Court, which had granted a stay of its operation. The respondents (Union of India and DGFT) sought time to file an affidavit-in-reply and asked that the Customs Department be joined as a party; the imported goods are perishable in nature.

Key provisions

• Section 11A, Customs Tariff Act, 1975 — Power of Central Government to amend First Schedule
• Section 5, The Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 — Foreign Trade Policy.
• Section 3, The Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 — Powers to make provisions relating to imports and exports.
• Section 11A, Customs Act, 1962 — Definitions