9911796707
TMI Blog1984 (1) TMI 66X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... se No. 639/83 before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Ahmedabad. The 3rd respondent, the Assistant Collector (Preventive) Customs Headquarters filed a criminal complaint in the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's court at Ahmedabad against 22 persons including the petitioners in the two cases. Summons have been issued on taking cognizance of this. While the criminal proceeding is thus pending proceedings have been taken up by issue of show cause notice to the petitioners and certain others as to why action should not be taken under the Customs Act in regard to violation of the provisions of the Act by them. The plea of the petitioners is that on identical facts and circumstances departmental proceedings under the Customs Act, 1962 are being t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion. 4. We need not go into this question elaborately in view of what has been said by the Supreme Court in T.G. Gaokar v. R.N. Shukla - AIR 1980 S.C. 1050. In that case proceedings for contempt were moved against the Customs Authorities for taking proceedings under Section 111 and Section 112 of offences under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code read with Section 135 of the Sea Customs Act, Rule 131B of the Defence of India Rules and S.B. of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act were pending. The trial before the Magistrate was imminent. It was the case of the appellants therein that the issue of show cause notice and proceedings pursuant thereto were calculated to obstruct the course of justice. This plea did not succeed. In dealing wi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... if he decides to speak in defence of his case. Those will be instances where the person concerned voluntarily offers himself as a witness and not on account of any compulsion. The Court observed in this context :- "It may be very necessary for the accused person to enter the witness box for substantiating his defence. But this is no reason for saying that the criminal trial compels him to be witness against himself and is in violation of Article 20(3). Compulsion in the context of Article 20(3) must proceed from another person or authority. This appellant is not compelled to be witness if he voluntarily gives evidence in his defence." 5. The further question as to what would be the situation where a person is summoned to give evidence ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... order to support their case that would not amount to testimonial compulsion as held by the Supreme Court. That question is therefore not open to the petitioners. The only other question is what may happen in the event the petitioners are summoned as witnesses. 7. The petitioners in SCA No. 690/84 have not been summoned as witnesses at all and it would lie too premature to say in that petition as to what consequences there would be if they are summoned as witnesses. But one of the petitioners in SCA No. 122/84 has been summoned and he has been examined also in part prior to his coming to this Court. The learned counsel for the Central Government Shri H.M. Mehta submitted before us that whatever statements are made by the witnesses in proce ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... here an accused in a criminal case is a witness in other proceedings and the testimony that he may give in answer may incriminate him. The protection provided by the proviso to Section 132 is buttressed by the statement of Customs Counsel that such statement will not be used in the criminal proceedings. In SCA No. 69/84, para 6 of the impugned order itself records the fact that such evidence will not be used against the deponent in the Court of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate where the criminal proceedings are pending. Even without any such assurance the proviso to Section 132 affords protection. 8. We do not think that the order of the Customs Authorities declining to stay the proceedings is vitiated by any erroneous exercise of discre ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
