Benefit of doubt in unrecorded factory goods dispute sustained, with confiscation and penalty set aside on the facts.

Confiscation of plywood and the truck was not sustained because the goods were found within the factory premises and the failure to enter them in the RG-1 register was explained as arising from the concerned employee's absence on leave. The appellate authority accepted that the goods had been manufactured in the preceding days, and the Tribunal found no infirmity in that reasoning. On the facts and circumstances, the respondents were entitled to the benefit of doubt, so the setting aside of confiscation and penalty was upheld.

---

---

Issues: Whether the confiscation of plywood and the truck, together with the penalty, was sustainable where the goods were found within the factory premises and were not entered in the RG-1 register.

Analysis: The appellate authority accepted the explanation that the goods were manufactured in the preceding days and had not been entered in the RG-1 register because the concerned person was on leave. The Tribunal found no infirmity in that reasoning and held that, on the facts and circumstances, the respondents were entitled to the benefit of doubt.

Conclusion: The setting aside of confiscation and penalty was upheld.

---