Central excise arrest power upheld without warrant, FIR or complaint when statutory conditions and approval are satisfied.

Sections 13, 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 were construed as a connected scheme conferring a substantive arrest power on a Central Excise Officer not below Inspector rank, subject to reason to believe that the person is liable to punishment and prior approval of the Commissioner. Section 18 was treated as governing only the manner of arrest and related safeguards under the CrPC, not as adding a warrant, FIR or prior complaint requirement. The settled distinction between revenue officers and police officers was applied, and the text was read to preserve effective enforcement against evasion.

---

---

Issues: Whether a Central Excise Officer can arrest a person under Section 13 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 without a warrant and without first lodging an FIR or filing a complaint before a Magistrate.

Analysis: Sections 13, 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 were read as a connected scheme. Section 13 confers a substantive power of arrest on a Central Excise Officer not below the rank of Inspector, subject to the officer having reason to believe that the person is liable to punishment under the Act and obtaining prior approval of the Commissioner. Section 18 makes the procedure for arrest and search subject to the Code of Criminal Procedure, but only as to the manner of effecting arrest and the attendant safeguards. The Court relied on the settled distinction between revenue officers and police officers, and on the principle that officers under fiscal statutes act to enforce levy, collection and prevention of evasion, not to perform police investigation. It held that the statutory text does not add a further requirement of prior FIR, complaint or warrant, and such a requirement would render Section 13 ineffective.

Conclusion: A Central Excise Officer may arrest a person under Section 13 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 without a warrant and without first lodging an FIR or complaint, provided the statutory conditions are satisfied.

---