https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=440861 Section 105 of the Customs Act, 1962 authorises search for goods liable to confiscation or relevant documents, but that power does not by implication extend to sealing premises. Sealing is a drastic interference with possession, use and occupation, and in business premises it also affects the right to carry on business, so it requires express statutory authority and lawful procedure. As no such express power was shown in Section 105 and no justification appeared for resorting to sealing instead of a cooperative search, the Customs authorities had no power to seal the premises and the office was to be unsealed for the search. en-us Tue, 25 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0530 Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:36:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=440861 Section 105 of the Customs Act, 1962 authorises search for goods liable to confiscation or relevant documents, but that power does not by implication extend to sealing premises. Sealing is a drastic interference with possession, use and occupation, and in business premises it also affects the right to carry on business, so it requires express statutory authority and lawful procedure. As no such express power was shown in Section 105 and no justification appeared for resorting to sealing instead of a cooperative search, the Customs authorities had no power to seal the premises and the office was to be unsealed for the search. Case-Laws Customs Tue, 25 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=440861