Report No. 162
Part II
3.18. Adjudicatory Machinery under the Customs Act, 1962.-
Under section 122 of the Customs Act, in every case under Chapter XIV of the Customs Act in which anything is liable to confiscation or any person is liable to a penalty, such penalty or confiscation may be adjudged:-
(a) without limit, by a Collector of Customs or a Deputy Collector of Customs;
(b) where the value of the goods liable to confiscation does not exceed Rs. 50,000 by an Assistant Collector of Customs;
(c) where the value of the goods liable to confiscation does not exceed Rs. 2500 by a gazetted officer of customs lower in rank than an Assistant Collector of Customs.
An order of confiscation for penalty under this Act is not a mere administrative or executive act, but is really a quasi-judicial act.
The Act also provides for valuation and classification of goods imported and exported as the case may be.