M/S. Tata Chemicals Ltd vs Commnr. Of ...

The Supreme Court held that the appellants were entitled to exemption from customs duty under Notification No. 35/90, as the ash content of the imported coking coal was below the specified threshold of 12%. The Court emphasized that the sampling and analysis conducted by the independent agency CASCO was valid and should have been accepted by the Customs Department, which failed to demonstrate any defects in the CASCO report. The Court ruled in favor of the appellants, quashing the show cause notices issued based on flawed sampling methods by the Customs Inspector, thereby upholding the principle of fair procedure in administrative actions.