TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1990 (8) TMI 142
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....after referred to as `the Act'). 2. A commercial vessel M.V. Jag Darshan arrived at Paradip Port on March 29, 1976. It was being rummaged by the customs officers from April 6, 1976 to April 13, 1976. In course of the rummage the customs officers recovered various contraband goods worth more than Rs. 1,40,000/- (Rupees one lac forty thousand), seized some quantity and detained the vessel by issue of a proper notice to the Master of the vessel with a copy to the second respondent Sri V.L. Choudhary, Deputy Conservator of Paradip Port Trust. At the instance of Sri V.L. Choudhary and another the vessel was shifted to the reads i.e far away anchorage of Paradip Port which was far in the high sea. As a result of the shifting, despite the d....
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....the date of receipt of this order under head 1037 - Customs Miscellaneous, Receipts, Fines, Rent, etc." 4. The order of the Collector was challenged in two writ petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution of India in the High Court of Orissa. The High Court quashed the penalty and allowed the writ petitions on two grounds. First, that the impugned order in each case in categorical terms showed that the jurisdiction had been exercised under Sections 133 and 151 of the Act; Section 137 of the Act made provision for cognizance of offences and Section 133 had been included therein, and as such Section 133 must be referring to Court and not to the Collector as the punishing authority, wherefore, the Collector was not competent to impose p....
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....him by the Collector; and the High Court ought not to have set aside the penalty. Counsel further submits that under the Customs Act there would be no double jeopardy if in an appropriate case one has been prosecuted and punished under the sections in Chapter XVI of the Act and also subjected to penalty under the provisions other than those in Chapter XVI of the Act for offences including those in Chapter XVI of the Act. None appears for the respondents. 6. To weigh the submissions, we may examine the relevant provisions of the Act. Admittedly, `offence' has not been defined in the Act. Chapter XVI in Sections 132 to 140A deals with "Offences and Prosecutions". Section 132 constitutes false declaration, false documents, etc. an of....
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....the person affected thereby is liable under the provisions of Chapter XVI of the Act or under any other law. This clearly shows that there will be no double jeopardy if for the same transaction, act or occurrence there is an award of any confiscation or penalty under the relevant provisions of the Act and also infliction of any punishment under the provisions of Chapter XVI of the Act or under any other law. Section 117, included in Chapter XIV, deals with penalties for contravention etc. not expressly mentioned. It says : "Any person who contravenes any provision of this Act or abets any such contravention or who fails to comply with any provision of this Act with which it was his duty to comply, where no express penalty is elsewhere pr....
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....cribed under the Act or amounts to non-compliance with any of the provisions of the Act, there will be possibility of prosecution and punishment under Chapter XVI of the Act and any other provision of law and at the same time confiscation and penalty under Chapter XIV of the Act. 10. As regards the allegations in the case, under Section 106(1) of the Act where the proper officer has reason to believe that any vessel in India or within the Indian customs waters has been, is being, or is about to be, used in the smuggling of any goods or in the carriage of any goods which have been smuggled, he may at any time stop any such vessel and (a) rummage and search any part of the vessel (b) examine and search any goods in the vessel. Under Sectio....