The Delhi High Court has directed the customs department to refund Rs. 15 lakh with 4% simple interest wrongly re-credited under the abolished scheme.
The bench of Justice Prathiba M. Singh and Justice Rajneesh Kumar Gupta held that the re-credit of the amount to the importer’s license was invalid as the relevant scheme had been abolished in 2013.
“The sum of ₹15,00,093 continues to be retained by the Respondents which would not be permissible… Accordingly, it is directed that the Respondents shall refund the said amount along with interest,” the bench stated.
The case arose after CMR Green had imported 197 consignments of aluminium scrap and claimed refund of excess duty paid. While the Customs authorities refunded ₹8.6 crore via RTGS in 2019, they re-credited ₹15 lakh to the importer’s license instead of directly transferring the amount, prompting a legal challenge by the company.
The petitioner contended that the re-crediting mechanism had been scrapped through Public Notice No. 06(RE-2013)/2009-14 dated April 18, 2013. As such, the Customs department had no authority to re-credit the amount to the license instead of issuing a direct refund.
Though CMR Green’s appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) and later before the CESTAT was dismissed on grounds of delay—559 days beyond the statutory limitation—the High Court stepped in to ensure the refund was not unfairly withheld.
The court observed that since the re-crediting scheme had been abolished, retention of the amount by the authorities was untenable and amounted to “unjust enrichment.”
While the Court acknowledged the delay in filing the appeal and reduced the applicable interest from 6% to 4%, it emphasized that the authorities cannot retain money under a scheme that no longer exists.
The court directed the department to release the refund within three months.
Case Details
Case Title: CMR GREEN TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED Versus UNION OF INDIA & ANR.
Case No.: W.P.(C) 3754/2022
Date: 09/07/2025
Counsel For Petitioner: Gulafsha Gupta
Counsel For Respondent: Samiksha Godiyal
