TV maker faces Rs 159 crore duty evasion fine.

Mumbai: A white goods major had to pay a heavy price for allegedly evading customs duty. The settlement commission has ordered Toshiba India, a subsidiary of Japan-based Toshiba Corporation to pay Rs159 crore as duty, interest and fine in a case relating to customs duty evasion, involving imports of LED/LCD television sets.

The commission has also imposed a penalty of Rs12.05 crore on Toshiba India and two other firms, Dixon Technologies and Dixon Global, through which some of the imports and assembling of TV sets were done - and six senior executives of the three companies. Toshiba India is marketing LCD or LED TV sets which are supplied by Toshiba Japan or Toshiba Singapore and assembled by companies including Dixon Technologies based in Dehradun.

The companies were accused of undervaluation of import consignments, fraudulently availing concessional rate of duty under the India-Asean Preferential Trade Agreement without following stipulated conditions. The company imported complete TV sets in semi-knocked down condition but declared it as parts of TV sets and wrongfully claimed exemption from basic customs duty. The company had moved the settlement commission agreeing to pay the duty, thus seeking exemption from prosecution. Settlement Commission offers a platform to settle cases involving evasion of customs duty payment.

Directorate of Revenue Intelligence which probed the case told the commission that the company had indulged in wilful duty evasion. It alleged that the conspiracy for evasion of duty was hatched by the parent company, its Indian arm and in the name of Dixon Technologies and Dixon Global.

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com