Manufacture or Import of Any Insecticides Without Registration Certificate can be Treated as Misbranded Goods u/s 3(k) (vi) of Insecticide Act : CESTAT [Read Order]

The Chennai bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that the manufacture or import of any insecticides without a registration certificate can be treated as misbranded goods under section 3(k) (vi) of the Insecticide Act,1968. 

SDS Ramcides Crop Science Pvt. Ltd, the appellant assessee appealed against the order passed by the Commissioner of Customs for imposing a penalty for the confiscation of goods and the imposition of a redemption fine. 

Hari Radhakrishnan, the counsel for the assessee contended that the assessee was a regular importer of insecticides and they also import various raw materials required for manufacture of fertilizers and other products. 

Further submitted that goods were imported from the authorized distributor of the manufacturer and that there was no substantial violation of the condition and there was no requirement in the Registration Certificate that the goods must be directly shipped by the manufacturer. 

Harendra Singh Pal, the counsel for the department relied on the decisions made by the lower authorities and contended that there was a violation of the conditions by the assessee and manufactured the insecticides without a registration certificate therefore the redemption fine and penalty imposed were legal and proper. 

The Bench observed that any person desiring to import or manufacture any insecticide may apply to the Registration Committee for the registration of such insecticide and there shall be a separate application for each such insecticide and the insecticide shall be deemed to be misbranded if it was not registered in the manner required under section 3(k)(vi) of the Insecticide Act. 

The two-member bench comprising Sulekha Beevi (Judicial) and Vasa Seshagiri Rao (Technical) quashed the redemption fine and penalties imposed without disturbing the order of confiscation and partly allowed the appeal filed by the assessee. 

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