LAHORE: The Customs Appellate Tribunal Lahore Monday directed the Director General Valuation Karachi to follow the Customs Act while determining the valuation of the goods.
The Tribunal accepted the appeal against the impugned Order-in-Review and Valuation Ruling on imported valve passed by the DG Valuation, Customs House Karachi. M/s Nadeem Corporation, M/s Star Corporation, M/s Pioneer Steel Corporation and M/s Sheraz Corporation has directed the appeal against the Order-in-Review No 364 of 2013 passed by the DG Customs Valuation Karachi. Brief facts of the case are that the appellant challenged the Valuation Ruling No 602/2013 dated October 31, 2013 on imported valves useable in residential houses, shops, factories and in big units on the legal as well as factual grounds.
The DG Valuation Karachi heard the matter and passed the order. The DG passed order, “The applicants who did not furnish import documents, thus failed to substantiate cause of their grievance with conclusive evidence. It also sounds strange that the applicants were continuously stressing for acceptance of their declared transactional value without providing documentary evidence to substantiate their claim. This forum is unable to verify truth and accuracy of their transactional value under section 25 (1) ibid, in a vacuum without supporting documents. They also failed to prove any illegality or impropriety in the impugned Valuation Ruling.
In view of aforesaid factual improprieties and legal infirmities, the review application merits no consideration and is accordingly rejected.” Later, importers directed the appeals in the Customs Appellate Tribunal Lahore and counsel of the appellant presented the arguments before Justice Chaudhary Muhammad Tariq that the impugned order has been passed in violation of Article 7 of World Trade Organisation (WTO) because while determining the value and also negated the spirit of Section 25-D and sub-section 3, 5 and 6 of Section 25 of the Customs Act, 1969.
The counsel for appellant took stand that the DG Valuation neither considered the evidence of appellant produced before him nor he mentioned this evidence in the impugned order. Counsel also took stand that the value of the valves (stainless steel) and valves (cast iron/carbon steel) and parts thereof shall not exceed USD 1.50/ kilogram whereas customs has fixed the value of China Origin at USD 3.50/Kg and USD 1.80/Kg while the said valves of other origin have been valued at US 4.55 $ per Kg and US $2.34 per Kg which in totally unfair and arbitrary. Appellants’ counsel added that respondent has fixed the value of all valves without taking into consideration the quality and kind of each valve.
The Chairman of the tribunal said in his judgment that “the provisions of sub-section (5) and sub-section (6) of Section 25 of the Customs Act 1969 were also not adopted by the Valuation Authorities while determining the Valuation Ruling. The impugned Order-in-Review is also a no-speaking order.”
According to the judgment, the matter is remanded back to the DG Valuation Karachi for determining the valuation of goods in question afresh in the manner as provided under Section 25 of the Customs Act 1969. The DG Valuation Karachi is further directed to decide the matter expeditiously preferably within 30 days of receipt of this order.
