9911796707
TMI Blog2004 (2) TMI 747X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nge Management Act, 1999, hereafter termed as 'the Act' for short. 2. The respondent herein was the sole noticee in the adjudication proceedings; the charge against him was that he had unauthorisedly purchased foreign currency in contravention to section 3(a) of FEMA; on search of his business/residential premises US $20,000 was recovered and seized on 9-10-2002; in response to the summons served on the respondent, he had given a detailed statement as on the acquisition of the seized foreign currency, his defence plea was that he had acquired the said currency for the purpose of arranging remittance of the entire outstanding to Company's Bank Account in order to make part payment of his Packing Credit amount of Rs. 30,00,000. On a detailed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ere is any ground for intervention in the impugned orders by this authority. Notice in the R.P. was duly served on the respondent regarding the prayer for revision and for order for confiscation of the seized amounts. 6. The point:- Proviso to section 19(6) is certainly restricted to exceptional cases of apprehended miscarriage of justice due on some glaring defects in the procedure followed or any manifest error of point of law; as submitted by the Ld. DLA in case the lower Court has exceeded jurisdiction vested in the authority the interference is called for by Revisional Court. The irregularity meant under revisional power no doubt, is illegality glaring and apparent on the face of the orders. As rightly submitted by the DLA as well as ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dition to any penalty which he may impose for such contravention direct that any currency, security or any other money or property in respect of which the contravention has taken place shall be confiscated to the Central Government and further direct that the foreign exchange holdings, if any of the persons committing the contraventions or any part thereof, shall be brought back into India or shall be retained outside India in accordance with the directions made in this behalf." 8. It is clear from the above quoted provision that the property/currency involved in the contravention calls for orders of confiscation, the statute confers powers on the adjudicating authority confiscated any currency in respect of the contravention has take ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pondent. But as regards the direction for release of the foreign currency, I find there is a clear illegality and gross miscarriage of justice in the said directions; the direction is not in consonance with the embodiment of section 13(2) of FEMA. The respondent's counsel was elaborately heard on this aspect. As rightly submitted on behalf of the petitioner, the orders for release of the seized foreign currency, is in manifest error on point of law and same does not sustain. As such the order for release of the foreign currency being vitiated by manifest error on point of law and in excess of jurisdiction conferred in the adjudicating authority and the illegality crept in being apparent and glaring on the face of the order, the orders for r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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