Customs Dept Repeatedly Told To Serve Notices, Orders On Assessee Via Email: Delhi High Court Seeks Compliance
Kapil Dhyani
17 March 2025 11:40 AM
The Delhi High Court has asked the Customs Department to scrupulously comply with its “repeated” direction to serve notices, orders on an assessee under the Customs Act, 1962 via email.
Traditionally, correspondence related to any violation of the Act is made via post. However, with advent of technology and to avoid delays, Court had in Bonanza Enterprises vs. The Assistant Commissioner of Customs & Anr. (2024) called upon the Department to send notices via email, in addition to service by speed post, registered post or courier.
“...in order to avoid improper service to parties and to avoid ex-parte proceedings, it is incumbent that service of notices, communications and orders ought to be effected even through email and on the common portal, in addition to the traditional methods,” the Court had said.
However, the High Court was once again faced with the case of seizure of gold bars, whereby the Petitioner-assessee contended that no show cause notice was issued to him.
Petitioner had thus sought release of his gold bars weighing 174 grams, which were detained by the Customs Department on his return from Saudi Arabia back in November 2023.
The Department opposed the petition, stating that a final order for 'absolute confiscation' and imposing a penalty had already been passed in the matter. It was submitted that the said order was communicated to the Petitioner via speed post.
The Petitioner on the other hand claimed that he never received it.
This prompted the division bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Rajneesh Kumar Gupta to observe,
“It has been repeatedly impressed upon the Customs Department and also directed that show cause notices, correspondence and orders ought to be communicated through email…It is expected that the Customs Department would adhere to the said directions, in terms of Section 153 of the Customs Act, 1962.”
Section 153(c) of the Customs Act empowers the Department to serve notices through email.
The petition was then disposed of giving Petitioner time to to avail his remedies against the final order, in accordance with law.
Appearance: Mohammed Ather, Advocate for Petitioner; Mr. Harpreet Singh, Senior Standing Counsel with Ms. Suhani Mathur and Mr. Jai Ahuja, Advocates for Respondent
Case title: Muhammad Nazim v. Commissioner Of Customs & Ors.
Case no.: W.P.(C) 3042/2025