In a major relief to luxury car importer Jatin Ahuja, Director of Big Boyz Toyz, the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), New Delhi, has quashed a 2016 order that had re-determined the value of his imported Bentley Flying Spur, denied concessional duty benefits, and imposed heavy penalties.
The bench of Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and Member (Technical) P.V. Subba Rao has observed that the Bentley qualified as a new car despite UK registration, as such registration was a legal requirement before export, consistent with precedents from the Bombay High Court (Noshire Moody) and earlier Tribunal rulings (Abbas Kuramputhoor). The inspection report at the time of import confirmed the vehicle’s new condition with only 123 km mileage. There was no conclusive evidence to justify rejecting the declared transaction value under Rule 12 of the Customs Valuation Rules, 2007, nor to apply Rule 3 for re-determination. The alleged higher “showroom price” could not be used to supplant the actual transaction value without proving it reflected the price paid or payable.
The Principal Commissioner of Customs had earlier rejected the declared assessable value of ₹73.84 lakh for the Bentley, increasing it to ₹88.61 lakh based on a UK report, and denied the concessional 60% duty under Notification No. 21/2002-Cus. The authorities argued that the car was not “new” as it had been registered in the UK before import, attracting a 100% basic customs duty. Penalties totaling ₹15 lakh were imposed on Ahuja under Sections 112(a) and 114AA of the Customs Act, alongside confiscation orders against Mera Baba Realty Associates Pvt. Ltd., which purchased the car post-import.
The department’s case rested on claims of undervaluation and mis-declaration, citing a report from the First Secretary (Trade), High Commission of India, London, which pegged the car’s price at GBP 109,850, higher than the declared GBP 91,500.
The Tribunal set aside the duty demand of Rs. 61.93 lakh, annulled all penalties on Ahuja, Mera Baba Realty, customs house agent Payless Cargo, and its G-Card holder Vikrant Kalia, and revoked the confiscation order.
Case Details
Case Title: Jatin Ahuja Versus Customs Commissioner
Case No.: CUSTOMS APPEAL NO. 52270 OF 2016
Date: 08.08.2025
Counsel For Appellant: Pradeep Jain, Shri Sambhav Jain and Shri Sumit Sarna, Advocates
Counsel For Respondent: Shankar, Authorized Representative
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Mariya is the Senior Editor at Juris Hour. She has 5+ years of experience on covering tax litigation stories from the Supreme Court, High Courts and various tribunals including CESTAT, ITAT, NCLAT, NCLT, etc. Mariya graduated from MLSU Law College, Udaipur (Raj.) with B.A.LL.B. and also holds an LL.M. She started as a freelance tax reporter in the leading online legal news companies like LiveLaw & Taxscan.
