Body Massager Can't Be Categorised As Adult Sex Toy, Be Prohibited: Court

The Bombay High Court has quashed an order passed by the Commissioner of Customs department confiscating consignments containing body massagers, stating that the action was based on “an imaginary / probable use of the goods” as the department had opined that the consignment could be used as “Adult Sex Toy,” which are prohibited for import.

The bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Kishor Sant said, "It was clearly the figment of the Commissioner's imagination and/or his personal perception that the goods are prohibited items."

The Commissioner of Customs confiscated the goods on April 6, 2022, claiming that the body massagers could be used as adult sex toys. Aggrieved by the Commissioner's order, the owners of the consignment had approached the Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal. The tribunal, while setting aside the Commissioner's order, severely criticised the same and said the view taken by the Commissioner to categorise the body massager as an adult sex toy was purely the officer's imagination.