RG-1 accounting lapse justified confiscation of unaccounted biscuits, with partial relief for goods not proven liable.

Unaccounted excisable biscuits not entered in the RG-1 register were treated as liable to confiscation because proper stock accounting is intended to prevent clandestine removal. The Tribunal distinguished goods produced before the officers' visit and not yet required to be entered at that moment, as well as 709 kg of biscuits kept in gunny bags without proof that they were marketable biscuits cleared from stock. Confiscation was therefore upheld for the balance of the unaccounted goods, while relief was granted for the quantities not shown to be liable to confiscation. The redemption fine and penalty were reduced to Rs. 5,000 each.

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Issues: Whether biscuits found unaccounted in the RG-1 register were liable to confiscation and whether the redemption fine and penalty imposed under Rule 173Q(1) required interference.

Analysis: The absence of proper RG-1 entries for excisable goods produced and available for removal was treated as a serious statutory lapse because the register serves to prevent clandestine removals. Goods produced prior to the officers' visit and not yet required to be accounted for at that moment, and goods shown to be merely in gunny bags without evidence of being cleared as marketable biscuits, were distinguished from the balance of the seized goods. The Tribunal applied Rule 173Q(1) to hold that unaccounted excisable goods are liable to confiscation and the manufacturer is liable to penalty, but relief was warranted for the quantities that were not shown to be liable to confiscation.

Conclusion: Confiscation was upheld for the remaining unaccounted goods, but set aside for the goods valued at Rs. 46,809.12 and the 709 Kgs. of biscuits in gunny bags; the redemption fine and penalty were reduced to Rs. 5,000 each.

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