A division bench of the Allahabad High Court, in M/S Maa Vindhyavasini Tobacco Pvt. Ltd v. Union of India & Ors, held that penalty cannot be imposed merely on ground that the goods started journey one week after the date of the invoice.
In the instant case, the department levied penalty on the petitioners on two grounds, firstly, there was a discrepancy in quantity specified in the invoice. Secondly, the goods started their journey one week after the date of the invoice.
Allowing the petition, Justices Bharati Sapru and Saumitra Dayal Singh held that “prima facie, that (goods started their journey one week after the date of the invoice) cannot be the ground to seize the goods or to impose penalty.”
The bench further directed the department to release the goods on furnishing of security equal to the value of the goods and tax payable by the petitioner.
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