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TMI Blog2003 (2) TMI 547X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dated 24th May, 1997 and acquitted the respondent of the charge leveled against him under Section 21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). It was held that the complaint filed by an authorized officer of the Narcotics Control Bureau (hereinafter referred to as 'the NCB') was without authority of law inasmuch as the officers of the NCB could not be authorized to effect search, seizure and arrest under the Act, the NCB not being a department of the Government. Consequently all actions taken by them were illegal since the proceedings taken in respect of the offences under the Act were by officers not legally empowered to do so. 4. In Criminal Appeal arising out of SLP (Crl.) No. 3816 of 2002 the High Court of Karnataka at Bangalore by its judgment and order dated 30thNovember, 2001 in Criminal Petition No. 669 of 2001 negatived a similar contention urged on behalf of the appellant in that appeal and held that the officers of the NCB could be and were duly empowered under the Act to conduct investigation including the power of search, seizure and arrest. It held that the NCB was not a statutory authority a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ional Conventions; (c) assistance to the concerned authorities in foreign countries and concerned international organizations with a view to facilitating coordination and universal action for prevention and suppression of illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances; (d) identification, treatment, education, after care, rehabilitation and social re-integration of addicts; (e) such other matters as the Central government deems necessary or expedient for the purpose of securing the effective implementation of the provisions of this Act and preventing and combating the abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and illicit traffic therein. (3) The Central government may, if it considers it necessary or expedient so to do for the purpose of this Act, by order, published in the Official Gazette, constitute an authority or a hierarchy of authorities by such name or names as may be specified in the order for the purpose of exercising such of the powers and functions of the Central Government under this Act and for taking measures with respect to such of the matters referred to in Sub-section (2) as may be mentioned in the order, and subject to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 2 of Section 4 is as follows:- (e) such other matters as the Central government deems necessary or expedient for the purpose of securing the effective implementation of the provisions of this Act and preventing and combating the abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and illicit traffic therein. 10. The respondent contends that the non inclusion of the matters contained in the Clause (e) of Sub-section (2) of Section 4 is very material, and an argument was sought to be advanced before the High Court to which we shall advert later. 11. Under Section 36A offences under the Act are triable only by the Special Court cons (SIC) for the area in which the offence has been committed. Section 36A(1)(a) and (d) are relevant, and they read as under:- 36A. Offences triable by Special Courts (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973- (a) all offences under this Act shall be triable only by the Special Court constituted for the area in which the offence has been committed or where there are more Special Courts than one for such area, by such one of them as may be specified in this behalf by the Government. (b) ... ... ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... under Chapter IV or that any narcotic drug, or psychotropic substance in respect of which any offence punishable under Chapter IV has been committed or any document or other article which may furnish evidence of the commission of such offence has been kept or concealed in any building, conveyance or place, may authorize any officer subordinate to him but superior in rank to a peon, sepoy or a constable, to arrest such a person or search a building, conveyance or place, whether by day or by night, or himself arrest a person or search a building, conveyance or place. 14. Section 42 which provides for power of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorization is in similar terms and the officers who may be authorized must be any such officer (being an officer superior in rank to a peon, sepoy or constable) of the Departments of the Central Excise, Narcotics, Customs, Revenue Intelligence or any other department of the Central Government or of the Border Security Force as is empowered in this behalf by general or special order by the Central Government. Section 42(1) is reproduced below for ready reference:- 42. Power of entry, search, seizure and arrest witho ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the State Government may, by notification published in the Official Gazette, invest any officer of the department of central excise, narcotics, customs, revenue intelligence or Border Security Force or any class of such officers with the powers of an officer-in-charge of a police station for the investigation of the offences under this Act. (2) The State Government may, by notification published in the Official Gazette, invest any officer of the department of drugs control, revenue, or excise or any class of such officers with the powers of an officer-in-charge of a police station for the investigation of offences under this Act. 16. Section 67 of the Act provides that any officer referred to in Section 42, who is authorized in this behalf by the Central Government or the State Government may, during the course of any enquiry in connection with the contravention of any provision of the Act, call for information from any person for the purpose of satisfying himself whether there has been any contravention of the provisions of the Act or any rule or order made thereunder and may require any person to produce or deliver any document or thing useful or relevant to the enquir ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ate the Narcotics Control Bureau. It only authorizes the Central Government to take all such measures as it deems necessary or expedient for the purpose of preventing and combating abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and the illicit traffic therein. Sub-section 2 of Section 4 enumerates only some of the measures which the Central Government may take. Sub-section 3 empowers and enables the Central Government in its discretion to constitute an authority or a hierarchy of authorities for taking measures with respect to such of the matters referred to in Sub-section 2, as may be mentioned in the order. The order constituting the authority is required to be published in the Official Gazette. It is therefore apparent on a mere perusal of Section 4 that the Act does not itself create an authority, but empowers the Central Government to do so in its discretion. The authority envisaged by the Section is constituted by the exercise of executive power by the Central Government which notifies its order constituting the authority by publishing the same in the Official Gazette enumerating the powers and functions to be exercised by it, subject to the supervision and control of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Rule 2 of the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules provides -- The business of the Government of India shall be transacted in the Ministries, Departments, Secretariats and Offices specified in the First Schedule to these rules (all which are hereinafter referred to as departments ). 24. In the absence of any precise definition of the word 'department' in must be given its natural and ordinary meaning, unless the legal context in which the word is used requires a different meaning. 25. The office memorandum of the Government of India dated 2.2.87 clarified that the Director General, NCB, under the over all supervision of the Revenue Secretary will be responsible for devising and undertaking programmes for strengthening and modernizing the Narcotics Intelligence Agencies in the country. As earlier noticed, the Director General is assisted by such officers as may be appointed by the Central Government from time to time. The Director General, NCB has also been declared by the President as the Head of Department for the purpose of exercising financial powers in respect of NCB. It is also brought to our notice that the President of India in exercise of power ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... had to do was to issue a similar Notification enlarging its powers and jurisdiction and notifying the same by publishing it in the official gazette. By the issuance of the aforesaid Notifications, the Government has only authorized a class of its officials in various departments of the Government including the Department of Revenue of which the NCB is a wing or branch to exercise powers under the aforesaid sections. A statutory duty has been cast on the Central Government to take all such measures as it deems necessary or expedient for the purpose of preventing and combating abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and the illicit traffic therein. Obviously the Central Government must act in discharge of the legislative mandate effectively and to do so it must necessarily act through its officers. The provisions of the Act, as we have noticed earlier, authorized the Central Government to empower such offices to exercise powers under various provisions of the Act. Since the Act itself confers such an authority on the Central Government, no exception can be taken to the exercise of such authority. By so empowering its officers, the Central Government purports to effective ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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