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TMI Blog2009 (1) TMI 237X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d and the reward for both the informer and the officers is much less than the admissible amount – matter remanded to reward committee with a direction to re-consider the issue of payment of further reward to the petitioner in accordance with guidelines. - 26466 of 2003(A), - - - Dated:- 13-1-2009 - S. Siri Jagan, J. Shri N.N. Sugunapalan (SR), for the Petitioner. Shri P.S. Sreedharan Pillai, SCGSC, for the Respondent. [Judgment].- The petitioner was an employee of M/s. ITI Ltd. Palakkad. In the course of his employment with company, he came across certain evasion of excise duty made by company. By Ext. P1, he passed on that information to the Superintendent of Central Excise, Customs, Intelligence and Investigation Unit, Co ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d Committee had taken a decision that the reward amount of Rs. 5 lakhs already sanctioned to the petitioner could be treated as the final reward. The petitioner is challenging Ext. P5. 2. According to the petitioner, in so far as, after declaring that 20% of the duty evaded can be paid as reward, the amount of Rs. 5 lakhs paid to the petitioner is palpably inadequate, in so far as 85 lakhs have been recovered from the company as duty and another Rs. 1 lakh as penalty pursuant to the information passed on by the petitioner. Since Ext. P5 referred to a decision of the Reward Committee, I directed the respondent to make available the files containing the decision of the Reward Committee. The file has been produced before me today. The cl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of reward will be as per specific rates indicated in the Annexure. These ceilings would be subject to periodical revision in the light of the price fluctuations of these items, for winch periodical intimations may be sent to the DGRI/DGNCB, who, in turn, will send suitable recommendations to the Ministry, for appropriate revision, as and when warranted." Clause 5(1) further states thus: "5.1 Reward is purely an ex gratia payment which, subject to guidelines, may be granted on the absolute discretion of the authority competent to grant rewards and cannot be claimed by anyone as a matter of right. In determining the reward which may be granted, the authority competent to grant reward will keep in mind the specificity and accuracy of the i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... light and the department would not have been able to recover the amount of Rs. 85 lakhs at all. That being so, I am of opinion that a more judicious application of mind was called for on the part of the Reward Committee on the amount to be fixed as reward, based on the guidelines quoted above, which does not appear to have been done going by the decision of the Reward Committee which is available in the file produced by the respondents and reads thus: "In this ease the appeal proceedings are not over. However the company has contested only penalty. The duty amount has already been realised. Out of the available reward amount of Rs. 8.5 lakhs the total amount disbursed is only Rs. 2.33 lakhs. The informer has already been sanctioned a rew ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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