9911796707
TMI Blog1981 (6) TMI 118X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ws: 3.. At the relevant time, the petitioner was an employee of Raghu Venkateswara Transport, the proprietor of which is one Shri Adi Murthy. On 3rd April, 1977, the petitioner was entrusted by his employer with a load of steel furniture consisting of 15 steel almirahs, 18 steel racks, 19 steel trays for being transported under invoices Nos. 112, 121, 122 and 123 bearing even date and issued by M/s. Venus Steel Industries, Bangalore, and under invoice No. 114 dated 3rd April, 1977, of one M/s. Venkateswara Industries, Bangalore, altogether valued at about Rs. 14,600. These were consigned to certain Government offices in Hassan and Mangalore Districts. When the petitioner reached the check post on Tumkur Road (National Highway No. 4) he was ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e respondents have justified detaining the articles. 5.. I find it difficult to sustain the detention of the articles by the respondents. 6.. It must be noticed here that although in the return filed by the respondents, they have denied that the penalty determined was paid, on perusing the records produced by the Government Pleader, I find that proposition was made to impose penalty of Rs. 2,250 which was indeed imposed on 4th April, 1977, and the same has been paid. 7.. The learned Government Pleader has not been able to point out under what provision of law the goods in question were detained. In the scheme of the Act, section 28 provides for powers to order production of accounts and powers of entry, inspection and seizure. Section ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... gh rank officer of the department of commercial taxes, i.e., Assistant Commercial Tax Officer, to be the officer-in-charge of the check post. Sub-section (4) of section 28A of the Act provides for the procedure by which the officer-in-charge of the check post shall conduct the inspection and for contravention by the person in charge of the goods or the driver of the vehicle. Subsection (4) of section 28A of the Act also provides for imposition and levy of penalty, the penalty so levied being limited to what is specified in sub-section (5) of section 28A of the Act. We are really concerned with sub-section (5) of section 28A of the Act. Sub-section (5) of section 28A of the Act deals with the limitation imposed on the officer-in-charge to le ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the instant case, the officer-in-charge of the check post has no power to detain the goods in transit. In fact, no explanation whatsoever is forthcoming from the learned Government Pleader for detention of the goods even after the penalty was paid. However, it is clear from the remarks column of exhibit B that the goods had been detained as further investigation was required on the instruction of the Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Intelligence. The instructions given by the superior officer cannot make an act of seizure legal if it is ab initio without the authority of law and illegal. To take a lenient view in this case is disastrous as the provision is made to safeguard not only public revenues but to protect the rights of citi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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