Gold confiscation and redemption option upheld where ownership claims lacked credible evidence and absolute forfeiture was too severe.

Gold confiscation was sustained because the claimants failed to prove possession or ownership with credible evidence; their challenge to the Collector's rejection of the claims therefore failed. The alleged keeping of the gold with Bhargav Shah was not supported by convincing material, including the missing register and the fact that the place of work was elsewhere. Although the contravention justified confiscation under the gold control requirements, absolute confiscation was considered too severe. The proper relief was confiscation with an option of redemption on payment of fine, so limited relief was granted while the substantive challenge was rejected.

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Issues: (i) Whether the confiscated gold could be treated as belonging to the claimants and whether the Collector's rejection of their possession and ownership claims called for interference; (ii) whether the confiscation could be sustained as absolute confiscation or only with an option of redemption.

Issue (i): Whether the confiscated gold could be treated as belonging to the claimants and whether the Collector's rejection of their possession and ownership claims called for interference.

Analysis: The claim that the gold was kept by Bhargav Shah and that the other claimants had placed their gold with him was found unsupported by convincing evidence. The absence of the relevant register from the house, the place of work being elsewhere, and the failure of the claimants to establish possession or ownership with credible material led to rejection of the claim-based challenge.

Conclusion: The rejection of the claims to possession and ownership was upheld and the confiscation was not interfered with.

Issue (ii): Whether the confiscation could be sustained as absolute confiscation or only with an option of redemption.

Analysis: Although contravention of the governing gold control requirement justified confiscation, the matter was not considered so grave as to warrant absolute confiscation. The proper course was to sustain the confiscation while allowing redemption on payment of fine.

Conclusion: Absolute confiscation was disapproved and redemption was allowed on payment of the specified fines.

Final Conclusion: The confiscation was sustained, but the goods were allowed to be redeemed on payment of fine, so the challenge failed on merits while limited relief was granted in favour of the claimants.

Ratio Decidendi: Where contravention justifies confiscation but the offence is not of such gravity as to warrant absolute forfeiture, the proper relief is confiscation with an option of redemption rather than absolute confiscation.

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