Court orders return of Rs. 1 crore & cheques in mandamus case. Department must establish demand before recovery.

The court granted the petition for mandamus, directing the respondent to return Rs. 1 crore and post-dated cheques to the petitioner. It was held that as there was no outstanding amount owed by the petitioner at the time and the investigation was ongoing without a determined payable sum, the department had no basis to retain the deposited money. The court emphasized that the department could only recover the amount upon establishing a demand. The respondent was instructed to refund the money, return the cheques, and safeguard the revenue's interest by securing it with the petitioner's industrial plots.

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Issues:
Petition for mandamus to return/refund money and cheques, Dispute over the amount outstanding, Legality of retaining the deposited sum, Safeguarding revenue's interest with property as security, Timely finalization of investigation.

Analysis:
The petitioner filed a writ petition seeking a mandamus to direct the respondent to return a sum of Rs. 1 crore and post-dated cheques of Rs. 75 lacs, along with other requests related to the search and seizure process. The petitioner's counsel argued that there was no outstanding amount, and the money was deposited under duress, while the respondent's counsel claimed the deposit was voluntary. The investigation was ongoing, and the liability could exceed the deposited amount. However, currently, there was no outstanding sum against the petitioner.

The court noted that since no amount was due from the petitioner as of the present date and the investigation was ongoing without any determined payable amount, there was no justification for the department to retain the deposited sum and cheques. The court emphasized that the department had no legal or moral right to hold the money without a raised demand but could recover it when a demand was established. The court directed the respondent to refund the Rs. 1 crore and return the cheques within a month, ensuring the revenue's interest was safeguarded by keeping two industrial plots owned by the petitioner as security.

An affidavit was submitted confirming the ownership of the industrial plots by the petitioner, free from encumbrances, to secure the revenue's interest. The court ordered the respondent to refund the money, return the cheques, provide copies of relevant documents, and finalize the investigation within a year. The order was made without prejudice to the rights of either party, ensuring a fair and timely resolution while safeguarding the revenue's interest with the property as security.

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