TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1961 (4) TMI 137
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.... notice asking them to show cause as to why their two cars, being Studehakar and Vauxhai, should not be confiscated under Section 168 of the Sea Customs-Act for having been used for the purpose of removal of the said goods. On 15-11-1958 the Collector of the Central Excise passed an order confiscating both the cars and imposing a penalty of ₹ 1000 on each, of the petitioners. Against that order a writ petition, being W. P. 571/58, was filed by the petitioners in this court. On 16-11-59 a memo was filed before this court by the parties in the said writ petition and this court made an order on the said memo. In the said memo it was stated that as there was no finding by the Collector of Central Excise, Bangalore, in his order dated 15-11-1958 that the gold was brought or sent from any place outside India, the respondents agree that the said order may be set aside. The 1st respondent under the said memo reserved the right to take evidence and make a finding whether the gold was brought or sent from any place Outside India. Thereafter, on 13-1-1960, fresh proceedings were started against the petitioners by giving them, notice to show cause- The petitioners sent their reply and ....
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....equire that evidence of the opponent should be taken in the presence of the party and that he should he given an opportunity to cross-examine the witnesses examined by the opponent. In this case, it is not disputed, the evidence of the witnesses have been taken behind the back of the petitioners and they were not given an opportunity of cross-examining the witnesses. So, on the authority of the said decisions of the Supreme Court, it should be held that the enquiry held in this case was conducted in a manner violative of all principles of natural justice. 6. But the learned Advocate-General tried to distinguish the said decisions of the Supreme Court on the ground that those decisions related only to a case under Article 311 of the Constitution. The learned Advocate-General contended before us that their Lordships were not considering in those decisions a case of the present nature. He further contended that the present case is not a case governed by Article 311 of the Constitution. The learned Advocate-General mainly relied on another decision of the Supreme Court in New Prakash Transport Co. Ltd. v. New Suwarnn Transport Co. Ltd., (S) and on the observations of Mr. Justice Sirth....
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....r court's sense of fairplay the superior Court may, we think, quite properly exercise its power to issue the prerogative writ of certiorari to correct the error of the Court or tribunal of first instance, even if an appeal to another inferior court or tribunal was available and recourse was not had to it or if recourse was had to it, it confirmed what ex facie was a nullity for reasons aforementioned. This would be so all the more if the tribunals holding the original trials and the tribunals hearing the appeal or revision were merely departmental tribunals composed of persons belonging to the departmental heirarchy without adequate legal training and background and whose glaring lapses occasionally come to our notice." These observations, in my opinion, are wide enough to cover all cases of investigation by a judicial or quasi-judicial tribunal. They cannot be restricted only to a case of departmental punishment coming under Article 311 of the Constitution. Similarly the observations made in the case reported in (S) , which have been approved in the subsequent decisions of the Supreme Court, are equally of wide application and cannot be said to have been limited merely t....
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....have regard to the matters set forth in Sec, 47 of Act, as already indicated. The Police authority within whose local jurisdiction any part of the proposed route lies has also been given the right to make representations. But the police report submitted to the Regional Transport Authority or to the Appellate Authority, if it requires the police authority to do so, is not intended to be anything more than an expression of opinion by an authority interested in the maintenance of law and order, with particular reference to the question as to whether any of the applicants for a permit had anything to its credit or discredit as supplier of transport facilities. Such a report is meant more for the use of the authority in making or refusing a grant than for the use of the several applicants or any one of them". "In other words", their Lordships continued "it is in the nature of information supplied by the police in order to assist the authority in making up its mind". 'These observations of His Lordship which immediately follow the observation on which the learned Advocate General relied, to my mind, clearly brings out the true meaning and effect thereof. I....
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....sses; and that the accused was not given any opportunity of adducing evidence in his own favour. As I began by saying, we must for the purposes of the argument, take these facts to be true, although it may be, when the case comes to be inquired into, it will be found that they are not true. Now assuming them to be true, it seems to me quite clear that there never was an adjudication of the land contemplated by the Sea Customs Act. I will not attempt to define what such an adjudication should be beyond this, that it must be a fair hearing of both sides". The learned Advocate-General sought to distinguish this case by contending before us that the fact that the evidence of the other party was taken in the absence of the accused and the accused had no opportunity of cross-examining the witnesses is not the only matter which induced their Lordships to hold that there was no fair hearing of both sides, but all the matters mentioned in the said judgment taken together induced their Lordships to take that view. I am unable to agree with the learned Advocate-General. The effect of that observations, to which I have referred, in my opinion, is that if any one of the things mentioned ....