The Supreme Court allowed civil appeals filed by Appellants against the Union of India, challenging a Notification imposing Minimum Import Price on steel products -- The Court held that the Notification issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 becomes effective only from its publication date in the Official Gazette, which was 11.02.2016 -- The Court interpreted para 2 of the Notification read with para 1.05(b) of the Foreign Trade Policy to grant transitional protection to importers who had opened irrevocable Letters of Credit before 11.02.2016 -- The Court rejected the High Court's view that uploading the Notification on the DGFT website on 05.02.2016 constituted sufficient notice -- The judgment establishes that the date of notification is fixed as the publication date, and importers with Letters of Credit opened before that date are entitled to protection under the transitional provisions
The Supreme Court allowed appeals challenging a High Court order that dismissed writ petitions against a Notification imposing Minimum Import Price on steel products -- The Court held that the expression 'date of Notification' in para 2 of Notification No.38/2015-2020 issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 means the date of its publication in the Official Gazette, which was 11.02.2016 -- The Court interpreted para 2 read with para 1.05(b) of the Foreign Trade Policy, 2015-2020 to grant transitional protection to importers who had opened irrevocable Letters of Credit before 11.02.2016 -- The Court rejected the contention that uploading the Notification on the Directorate General of Foreign Trade website on 05.02.2016 constituted sufficient notice -- The Court emphasized that statutory notifications derive authority from publication in the Official Gazette as mandated by Section 3 of the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 -- The judgment clarifies that the date of notification remains static as the publication date, and transitional benefits apply accordingly
The Supreme Court allowed the appeals, holding that the expression 'date of Notification' means the date of its publication in the Official Gazette, which was 11.02.2016, and that importers who opened irrevocable Letters of Credit before this date are entitled to transitional protection under para 2 read with para 1.05(b) of the Foreign Trade Policy
Citation: 2026 LawText (SC) (01) 65
Case Number: Civil Appeal No. of 2026 (@ S.L.P. (C) No. 1979 of 2019), Civil Appeal No. of 2026 (@ S.L.P. (C) No. 2297 of 2019), Civil Appeal No. of 2026 (@ S.L.P. (C) No. 2778 of 2019), Civil Appeal No. of 2026 (@ S.L.P. (C) No. 1977 of 2019)
Date of Decision: 2026-01-21
Case Title: Whether the expression 'date of Notification' mentioned in para 2 of the Notification issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992, can be interpreted to mean any date other than the date of its publication in the Official Gazette
Before Judge: PAMIDIGHANTAM SRI NARASIMHA J. , ALOK ARADHE J.
Equivalent Citations: 2026 INSC 80
Advocate(s): Not specified in provided text
Appellant: Viraj Impex Pvt. Ltd., Other Importers
Respondent: Union of India, Directorate General of Foreign Trade
Nature of Litigation: Civil appeals challenging a High Court order that dismissed writ petitions against a Notification imposing Minimum Import Price on steel products
Remedy Sought: Appellants sought to quash the Notification or obtain a declaration that it does not apply to Letters of Credit opened prior to its publication in the Official Gazette
Filing Reason: The appellants contended that the Notification, published on 11.02.2016, could not apply to imports covered by Letters of Credit opened earlier, specifically on 05.02.2016
Previous Decisions: High Court of Delhi, in a Common Order and Judgment dated 21.12.2018, dismissed the writ petitions, holding that uploading the Notification on 05.02.2016 constituted sufficient notice, though it would operate from 11.02.2016
Issues: Whether the expression date of Notification in para 2 of the Notification can be interpreted to mean any date other than the date of its publication in the Official Gazette Whether importers who opened Letters of Credit on 05.02.2016 are entitled to transitional protection under para 1.05(b) of the Foreign Trade Policy
Submissions/Arguments: Appellants argued that the Notification was non-est prior to 11.02.2016 and that para 2 read with para 1.05(b) of the FTP grants protection to Letters of Credit opened before the date of restriction Respondents argued that the benefit of para 2 is restricted to Letters of Credit entered into before 05.02.2016, and that the date of Notification remains static as 05.02.2016, with the Notification governing imports from 11.02.2016
Ratio Decidendi: The date of a statutory notification issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 is the date of its publication in the Official Gazette as mandated by Section 3 of the Act -- Transitional protection under para 1.05(b) of the Foreign Trade Policy applies to importers who have opened irrevocable Letters of Credit before the date of publication of the notification -- Uploading a notification on a website before gazette publication does not constitute sufficient notice to bind importers
Judgment Excerpts: The controversy lies in narrow compass and turns primarily on the interpretation of the expression 'date of this Notification' occurring in para 2 of Notification No.38/2015-2020 The High Court though held that the Notification would operate from 11.02.2016 i.e., the date of its publication, yet it held that uploading of the Notification on 05.02.2016 constituted sufficient notice The pivotal issue that falls for our consideration is whether the expression 'date of Notification' mentioned in para 2 of the Notification issued under the Act, can be interpreted to mean any date, other than the date of its publication in the Official Gazette Section 3 of the Act empowers the Central Government to regulate imports and exports by an order published in the Official Gazette
Procedural History: Appellants entered into sale contracts and opened Letters of Credit in February 2016 -- DGFT uploaded Notification on 05.02.2016, published in Official Gazette on 11.02.2016 -- Appellants applied for registration of Letters of Credit under transitional protection on 08.02.2016 -- Appellants filed writ petitions in High Court challenging the Notification -- High Court dismissed writ petitions by Common Order and Judgment dated 21.12.2018 -- Appellants filed Special Leave Petitions in Supreme Court, granted leave, leading to civil appeals
