# P&H High Court orders release of betel nuts held by Customs since 2024 2026-08-27T02:42:09+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed Customs authorities to release consignments of areca nuts (betel nuts) imported by a Ludhiana-based company in 2024, after they were held for months over a classification dispute. The company declared the nuts as roasted, attracting a lower duty, while Customs classified them as dried nuts with a higher duty. The court on August 17 found that the test report relied upon by Customs was based only on physical appearance, not scientific parameters, and noted that four similar consignments with moisture content below 7 percent had already been released on personal bond. The bench of Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor ordered release of the goods on a personal bond, subject to the ongoing proceedings to determine the correct duty. The court directed physical delivery within a fortnight and also ordered release of two consignments that authorities themselves had found to be roasted but had held for eight months. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The case highlights a recurring friction between importers and Customs over goods classification, where minor differences in processing (roasted vs dried) can mean substantially different duty outlays. The court's insistence on scientific testing over visual inspection could set a precedent for similar classification disputes pending at ports. The next procedural step is the company's response to the show-cause notice within four weeks, after which Customs will determine the final duty payable. If the department fails to establish a scientific basis for its classification, the importer may avoid a significant duty demand on the disputed consignments. ## Coverage - barandbench.com Straight report of court order with no slant or editorialising. This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Ashwani Kumar Mishra, customs, Punjab and Haryana High Court, Rohit Kapoor Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/ph-high-court-orders-release-of-betel-nuts-held-by-customs-since-2024/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/ph-high-court-orders-release-of-betel-nuts-held-by-customs-since-2024/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/