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2020 ] ADANI POWER LTD. v. UNION OF INDIA 73

invited the attention of the Court to Rule 22 of the SEZ Rules, to submit that the
terms and conditions for availing exemptions are provided thereunder and that
the provisions of the Customs Act will not apply. Reference was made to para-
graph 48 of the previous judgment of this Court, to point out that the Court has
held that in order to give impetus to exports, the SEZ Act has been enacted. The
SEZ Act envisages a deeming fiction where a SEZ area would be considered out-
side the Customs area of the country. It is also noticed that Section 30 of the SEZ
Act permits DTA clearances to a SEZ unit under certain conditions. One of the
conditions being the goods removed from SEZ to DTA would be chargeable to
duties of customs including anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties
under the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 where applicable as leviable on such goods
when imported. Reference was also made to paragraph 53 of the judgment,
wherein it has been held thus :
“53. However, from the above statutory provisions, it can be seen that by
virtue of Section 30 of the SEZ Act, a SEZ unit on its clearance of goods to
any DTA invites duty of Customs where applicable as leviable on such
goods when imported. Such DTA clearance by a SEZ unit would, thus, be
treated as imports for computation of customs duty. Section 30 of the SEZ
Act only imposes conditions for a SEZ unit to clear the goods to a DTA.
Such condition is payment of authorized duties, as applicable and leviable
on such goods when imported. By reference, therefore, the charging Section
12 of the Customs Act, 1962 would be leviable as if the goods cleared by
SEZ unit to the DTA are in the nature of imports. If, therefore, by virtue of
an exemption notification, the whole of customs duty payable is exempted,
then no customs duty would be payable on import of such goods. Even
otherwise, Section 51 of the SEZ Act gives overriding effect to the provi-
sions of the Act.”
8.1 It was submitted that there is no question of applicability of the
Customs Act to SEZ and that Section 30 is the charging section and the word
“leviable” employed therein has to be interpreted in the context of payability.
Reference was also made to the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of M/s.
Frick India Ltd. v. Union of India and Others, (1990) 1 SCC 400 = 1990 (98) E.L.T. 627
(S.C.), wherein the Court held thus :
“8. It is well-settled that the headings prefixed to sections or entries can-
not control the plain words of the provision; they cannot also be referred to
for the purpose of construing the provision when the words used in the
provision are clear and unambiguous; nor can they be used for cutting
down the plain meaning of the words in the provision. Only, in the case of
ambiguity or doubt the heading or sub-heading may be referred to as an
aid in construing the provision but even in such a case it could not be used
for cutting down the wide application of the clear words used in the provi-
sion. Sub-item (3) so construed is wide in its application and all parts of re-
frigerating and air-conditioning appliances and machines whether they are
covered or not covered under sub-items (1) and (2) would be clearly cov-
ered under that sub-item. Therefore, whether the manufacturer supplied
the refrigerating or air- conditioning appliances as a complete unit or not is
not relevant for the levy of duty on the parts specified in sub-item (3) of
Item 29A.”
8.2 It was submitted that the previous judgment of this Court proceeds
mainly on the principle that if no duty is liable to be paid on import to DTA,
there is no duty liability. It was submitted that if a particular principle is enunci-
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