ZENITH COMPUTERS LIMITED Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD the learned Advocate for the parties. Perused the records. The petitioners challenge the orders passed by the respondents rejecting their applications claiming refund in the nature of drawback.

(2.) THE petitioners carry on the business of manufacturing computers and peripherals in their factory at 29 M. I. D. C. , Industrial Estate, Central Road, Andheri (West), Bombay. The petitioner No. 2 is a shareholder of the said company.

(3.) IT is the case of the petitioners that they are one of the leading computer manufacturers in India and during September, 1989 they were flooded with a series of export orders mainly from U. S. S. R. The first petitioners did not have any experienced person or an export department to handle these export orders and particularly the post shipment formalities and, therefore, they appointed a Senior Export Manager in October, 1989 for handling all such pro cedural work. However, the said officer left the services of the first petitioner company on 31st December, 1989. The petitioners prime concern at that relevant time was to execute the export order and as the orders placed were voluminous and heavy, so much so that no airline was willing to export the transportation of the entire consignment in one lot. The orders consisted of several systems of configurative, peripherals, spares, consumables, softwares, etc. and were required for the net working of a single area of operation and that constituted one composite unit for the first phase of the buyers automation programme and despite the fact that the buyers wanted the entire consignment in one lot, none of the airline was willing to transport the same in one lot, as the entire lot was voluminous and heavy. Therefore, the petitioners were forced to despatch the goods in four lots under four different shipping bills, the same were followed by two more consignments of exports.