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Informist, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025

 

NEW DELHI – The Delhi High Court Thursday warned that it would be compelled to take "stringent action" if the customs department resorted to delaying tactics in giving effect to the court's orders for the release of detained goods. "This court repeatedly notices that various judgments and orders which are passed, especially orders directing the release of detained goods to the respective passengers, are not being given effect to on the ground that the customs department intends to avail of some remedies. This results in the matters being delayed beyond a reasonable period," a bench of Justice Prathiba M. Singh and Justice Renu Bhatnagar said.

 

The court is compelled to remind the customs department that the statutory limitations prescribed under the relevant laws are not merely binding on the passengers praying for release of their jewellery, personal items or other goods, the bench said. The customs department is also expected to be fair and not unreasonably prolong a passenger's hardship in seeking the release of their goods, especially where the department has not raised any allegations of fraud or smuggling, the high court said.

 

The high court asked the customs department to implement its August order within a week, directing it to release the detained goods, consisting of a gold chain weighing about 45 grams and an iPhone 15 Pro, to petitioner Dhruv Mittal, subject to payment of applicable customs duty only in respect of the iPhone. Upon the customs department's failure to comply with the direction, it will pay a fine of INR 20,000 to the petitioner, the court said.

 

Mittal had said that he visited the customs department's office at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, in August and September. However, he was informed that the matter was under review by the customs department's legal team. The high court observed that it was a clear case of disobedience of the order passed by the court in August.

 

In a hearing in September, the customs department had informed the court that it was likely to challenge the August order before the Supreme Court. However, no appeal has been filed by the customs department, and now the time for filing the same has also expired, the high court said.  End

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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