Jyoti Balasundaram, Vice-President - (1.)THE appellants herein challenge the order of the Commissioner of Customs, who has, in addition to ordering absolute confiscation of 3090 old and used tyres imported by M/s Plastic Home, imposed penalty of 2 lakhs each upon them. THE Commissioner has also imposed penalty on the importers and others. THE case of the department is that 3090 tyres imported by M/s. Plastic Home required licence for their clearance as they were not cut into two pieces and only used rubber tyres and tubes cut into two pieces could be imported without a licence in accordance with Para 29 of the Import & Export Policy 1992-97 read with Para 27 of the Hand Book of Procedure 1992-1997 read with ITC Public Notice No. 1/92-97 dated 1-4-92. As far as the present appellants are concerned, their statements were recorded. Shri Sorathia stated that he was a power of attorney of the importer and he did not know about the new tyres found alongwith the manifested cargo of old and used tyres. THE statement of Shri Hanif Modi was also recorded, in which he stated that it was Shri Bharat Vora of M/s. Plastic Home who informed him to make the clearance of the goods and thereafter, the tyres would be sent for re-trading and then sold in Indian market. We find that the Adjudicating authority has not assigned any particular role or attributed specific knowledge to the appellants that the old tyres imported in the name of Plastic Home were not permissible for clearance without a licence. Moreover, the reading of the statements as reproduced in the impugned order do not lead to the conclusion that either of them had any knowledge that the clearance of the imported goods required specific licence. We also find that the Commissioner has in general held that the omissions of the persons involved in the case rendered them liable to penalty which is not sufficient in the absence of any knowledge on the part of the appellants that the goods required to be cleared only under a licence. THErefore, penalties imposed upon them cannot be sustained. Accordingly, we set them aside by setting aside the impugned order and allow the appeals.