Legal principle

A CESTAT order on classification, rate of duty or valuation cannot be challenged in the High Court under Section 130; the appeal lies directly to the Supreme Court under Section 130E.

Court decision

The Calcutta High Court dismissed the appeal and the connected application as not maintainable before it. It held that the appeal should be preferred before the Supreme Court under Section 130E of the Customs Act, 1962. The court did not decide the classification dispute itself.

Facts

A S Chattha Exim Pvt Ltd imported goods and disputed their classification. Customs assessed them under CTH 34039100, while the importer wanted CTH 32021000, relying on a National Test House test certificate and a West Bengal VAT tribunal order. The CESTAT upheld the customs classification. The importer filed an appeal under Section 130 of the Customs Act before the Calcutta High Court, proposing several questions of law on classification and on the binding effect of an earlier remand order of the Commissioner (Appeals).

Key provisions

• Section 130E, Customs Act, 1962 — Appeal to Supreme Court
• Section 130(1), Customs Act, 1962 —  Appeal to High Court