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TMI Blog2001 (6) TMI 836X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... reign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947 and calling upon him to show-cause as to why adjudication proceedings be not held against him. After holding the proceedings and hearing the Party, the Adjudicating Officer acquitted him in respect of SCN-I, III and IV, holding that there was no evidence to show that the appellant had received payment or made payments by order on behalf of the person resident of U.K. As regards SCN-II wherein the alleged contravention was for an amount of Rs. 12,13,700, the Adjudicating Officer found that the department had proved that the involvement of Rs. 2,06,200. Therefore, he reduced the receipt of payment from Rs. 12,13,700 to Rs. 2,06,200 and imposed a penalty of Rs. 1 lakh against which the present appeal has bee ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... facts and the charges. The appellant denied the contravention and claimed that this case had been falsely made out against him on account of enemity with the officers of the respondent. The appellant submitted that nothing incriminating was recovered or seized from his residential premises. As regards the search of his shop, the appellant submitted that the documents shown to have been recovered from his shop were planted on him and these were never recovered from his shop. The search was illegal as no respectable person of the locality was made to join the search. The two witnesses who were made to join the search were not of Nakodar, but were from neighbouring villages. The appellant further maintained that Amritpal Singh under whose sig ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rom July, 1974 onwards but he left the job and returned to his village Khem Karan in January, 1974. This would not be possible as Karam Chand was not introduced to appellant in January, 1974. In view of the aforesaid, the appellant strongly urged that the appeal be allowed and the impugned order be quashed and set aside. 4. Shri Gadoo on behalf of the respondent submitted that the basis of holding the appellant guilty of contravention was two letters which were seized from his possession and supported by the statement of Shri Karam Chand and also the statements of 17 persons who admitted having received money on the instructions of non-residents. The said letters are stated to have been written by Amritpal Singh, the real brother of Avtar S ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... re a criminal court cannot be bodily lifted and transplanted in adjudication proceedings. In support of this the rely in the case of Jai Prakash Chawla v. Collector of Customs, 1987 (28) E.L.T. 153 (Tribunal). 5. The appellant made further submissions stating that Amritpal Singh, whose name appeared in the two letters is not his brother. The appellant does not know any person by that name. The appellant s brothers are Amarjeet Singh and Balkar Singh. The appellant further submitted that he was not only discharged in some of the prosecution cases but he was also acquitted on merits and inasmuch as in one case where he was convicted in the trial court, on appeal, he was acquitted by the Appellate Court. His acquittal in criminal cases is not ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the appellant s brothers, lack of evidence on receipt of payment by the appellants or of any person identifying the appellant as the one who disbursed the same to other persons on the instructions received from NRI, and the allegation of enemity with the officers of the respondent as gathered from the criminal prosecution against the appellant under the Indian Penal Code ultimately resulting in the acquittal of the accused and the High Court s observations on the proprietary of search conducted in the case, all tend to tilt the preponderence of probabilities in favour of the appellant. The respondents cannot take shelter under the Departmental Advocate s failure to properly conduct the criminal cases against the appellant wherein the app ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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