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TMI Blog1978 (12) TMI 194X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hhotey. 2. The prosecution case in brief is that on 5-4-19(i9 Sri Onkar Singh Rathore, S. I. Kemri district Rampur received information that a truck containing illegal goods was coming from the side of Milak and would go to Kemri. On receiving this information Sri Rathor went at the Octroi Outpost and collected certain witnesses from the way. At about 8-15 A.M. he saw motor truck No. USD 6095 coming at a fast speed from the side of Milak. He gave signal to the driver to stop the bus but he paid no heed and drove it away towards Bilaspur side and then entered the town of Kemri. The police officer accompanied by the witnesses followed it and found the motor truck standing in front of the house of Nazir and Chhotey. The truck was in a sta ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at the bags contained wheat they were unloading them. 4. Latif Khan and Jalil Ahmad admitted themselves to be the driver and owner respectively of the motor truck but gave out that they were bringing their truck from Bareilly after getting it repaired. At Milak outpost Karim Bux and Chhotey revisionists and Majid met them and requested them to carry three or four bags containing shoes to Kemri. They allowed them to do so. Karim Bux, Chhotey and Majid also sat down in the motor truck. They did not know that the bags contained smuggled goods. 5. All the five revisionists were found guilty of the said charge and were sentenced to one year's R.I. The appeal filed against it was dismissed. 6. The recovery of aforesaid goods (Exs. 1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r has reason to believe that any person to whom this section applies has secreted about his person any goods liable to confiscation, he may search that person. Sub-section (2) enumerates the classes of persons to whom this section is applicable. Section 2(34) of the Act says that 'proper officer' in relation to any functions to be performed under this Act means the officer of Customs who is assigned those functions by the Board or Collector of Customs. 8. Section 101 lays down that without prejudice to the provisions of Section 100, if an officer of Customs, empowered in this behalf by general or special order of the Collector of Customs, has reason to believe that any person secreted about his person any goods of the descriptio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... authorities under orders of the court and it was held to be a seizure by proper officer. In this view of the matter the provision of Section 123 was fully applicable and it was for the revisionists to prove that the goods were not smuggled. Not an iota of evidence was adduced by them to prove that the markings on the goods were fake and they were actually manufacturer India. In its absence the goods would be presumed to be of foreign make on the basis of the markings existing thereon. 10. Another contention advanced before me is that the goods were not smuggled goods. Section 2(39) lays down that smuggling in relation to any goods, means an act or omission which will render such goods liable to confiscation under Section 111 or Section 1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d knowledge that the goods were smuggled goods. In the first place, when the police officer gave a signal to stop the motor truck at the Octroi Post the vehicle was not stopped. On the other hand they sped up in order to evade the police. All the five revisionists were in the motor truck at that time as given out by Latif and Jalil Ahmad revisionists themselves. Therefore, there is no scope for argument that those who were unloading the goods were called specifically for this purpose and they started unloading innocently without having knowledge of the nature of goods. Secondly, the engine of the motor truck was working even at the time when the goods were being unloaded. If the revisionists had no mala fide intention, they would have stopp ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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