Loose Sheets and Pocket Diary Not Sufficient to Prove Clandestine Clearance of Mild Steel Ingots:...

The CESTAT (Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal) has ruled that "loose sheets and a pocket diary are not sufficient to prove clandestine clearance of mild steel ingots." The tribunal set aside demands and penalties, emphasizing that serious allegations of duty evasion without payment require strong, corroborative evidence. The loose documents lacked credibility as they were unsigned, in pencil, and uncorroborated by other concrete evidence like unaccounted raw material, cash transactions, or transport records. This decision reinforces the principle that charges of clandestine removal cannot be sustained on flimsy or unreliable evidence.