TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (4) TMI 655
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....paste. Further, the respondent officials requested the two mahazar witnesses to conduct personal search. The petitioner had crossed the Green Channel International Custom Arrival Hall Terminal-II at Kempegowda International Airport (In short KIA) Bengaluru. The respondent officials started checking the passport of passengers. After checking few passports, the respondent officials stopped the petitioner and requested her come to aside. Then, the respondent officials showed mahazar witnesses the passport of the petitioner, she was holding passport bg. No. Z8195849. Further, the officials informed the mahazar witness regarding name and address, ticket number of petitioner and flight number wherein she travelled. At that time, one protocol officer by name Basavaraj had also accompanied with the petitioner. 3. Initially, the respondent officials have checked bag and lady shoulder hand bag. The protocol officer was carrying bag grey coloured particular bag of ACURA Brand pertaining to the petitioner. On checking of both bags through scanner machine installed in the customers arrival area, the respondent officials have found nothing therein. 4. Thereafter, the respondent official....
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.... have not complied the safe guard provided under Section 102 of the Customs Act The respondent officials have not followed the guidelines/directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The respondent officials requires serve arrest memo separately on the petitioner, as per the Circular of Customs Department. Therefore, it effects on the correctness and legality of the impugned Order. The procedure followed by the respondent officers at the time of arrest, it clearly discloses that the petitioner falsely implicated in this case. The petitioner is a lady (female) the provisions of section 480 of BNS Sanhita-2023 is applicable to case in hand. The alleged offence is not punishable with death or imprisonment for life. The grounds urged in remand application is base less. Further, the Trial Court failed to appreciate the contention taken by the petitioner regarding denial of the sleep, it affects the legality and credibility of placing reliance. The Trial Court misunderstood the Judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court rendered in Radhika Agarwal's case. There is no prima-facie case. The learned Trial Court committed error. The petitioner is having influence over the witnesses and tamper the witness....
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..... Hence, prays to reject the bail petition. 10. Heard both sides. 11. The following Points arise for my consideration: 1. Whether the petitioner/accused is entitled for grant of bail.? 2. What Order.? 12. By considering the bail petition, objections and hearing of the rival parties, my answer to the above point is as under:- Point No. 1: In the negative Point No. 2: As per final order .............for the following. REASONS 13. Point No.1:- The learned counsel for the petitioner/accused submitted that, in this case, personal search of petitioner is not in accordance with law. Before conducting personal search, respondent official by name Smt. Neha Kumar was not disclosed her rank and her identity, in this regard no recitals in mahazar. Further, the arrest of the petitioner is not accordance with Circular issued by the Custom Department. According to the said Circular arrest memo, reasons to believe and grounds of the arrest, must be made separately. But in this case, they have done all three acts in one document. Therefore it is not in accordance with law. The learned counsel for the petitioner urged that in mahazar nowher....
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....ssioner of Central Excise. (2022) 10 SCC 51 Satendar Kumar Antil Vs. CBI. Writ Petition No. 6016/2025, Order date 12.03.2025, Viral Narendra Gosalia Vs. Senior Intelligence Officer, Directorate General of Goods and Services, Bangalore, passed by the High Court of Karnataka, Bangalore. 2025 SCC Online SC 449 Radhika Agarwal VS. Union of India & Ors. 17. As against this, the learned standing counsel for the respondent urged that the respondent officials have suspected the petitioner and conducted check on her bags and they have found nothing. Thereafter, they have complied all the guidelines laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and their own Circular before conducting personal search of the petitioner. The search under section 50 of the NDPS and Search under section 135 of the Customs Act are totally different. 18. The respondent officials have issued notice to the petitioner on 03.03.2025 and informed her legal rights. Then, they have taken consent of the petitioner in writing. Then lady Gazetted Officer of DRI, Bengaluru. i.e., Smt. Neha Kumari conducted personal search of the petitioner in room of Customs Hall. Thereafter, she found that the peti....
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....24-SC Gurwinder Singh Vs. State of Punjab and another. 2022-379-E.L.T-329-MP Prakash Sankia @ Prakash Jain Vs. DRI, Bhopal. (2025) 27 Centax 425 (S.C) Radhika Agarwal Vs. Union of India. 20. Before going merits of case, this Court has relied on certain provision of Customs Act CHAPTER XIII SEARCHES, SEIZURE AND ARREST 101. Power to search suspected persons in certain other cases.- (1) Without prejudice to the provisions of section 100, if an officer of customs empowered in this behalf by general or special order of the Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs], has reason to believe that any person has secreted about his person any goods of the description specified in sub-section (2) which are liable to confiscation, or documents relating thereto, he may search that person. (2) The goods referred to in sub-section (1) are the following:- (a) gold; (b) diamonds; (c) manufactures of gold or diamonds; (d) watches; (e) any other class of goods which the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify. 102. Persons to be searched may r....
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....eding fifty lakh 5 [rupees; or], shall be cognizable. (c) fraudulently availing of or attempting to avail drawback or any exemption from duty provided under this Act, where the amount of drawback or exemption from duty exceeds fifty lakh rupees; or (d) fraudulently obtaining an instrument for the purposes of this Act or the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 (22 of 1992), and such instrument is utilised under this Act, where duty relatable to such utilisation of instrument exceeds fifty lakh rupees. (5) Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (4), all other offences under the Act shall be non-cognizable. (6) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, (2 of 1974) an offence punishable under section 135 relating to- (a) evasion or attempted evasion of duty exceeding fifty lakh rupees; or (b) prohibited goods notified under section 11 which are also notified under sub-clause (c) of clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 135; or (c) import or export of any goods which have not been declared in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the market price of which exce....
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....e to confiscation under Section 111 or Section 113, as the case may be; or (c) attempts to export any goods which he knows or has reason to believe are liable to confiscation under Section 113; or (d) fraudulently avails of or attempts to avail of drawback or any exemption from duty provided under this Act in connection with export of goods; or (e) obtains an instrument from any authority by fraud, collusion, willful misstatement or suppression of facts and such instrument has been utilised by such person or any other person, he shall be punishable,- (i) in the case of an offence relating to,- (A) any goods the market price of which exceeds one crore of rupees; or (B) the evasion or attempted evasion of duty exceeding fifty lakh of rupees; or (C) such categories of prohibited goods as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify; or (D) fraudulently availing of or attempting to avail of drawback or any exemption from duty referred to in clause (d), if the amount of drawback or exemption from duty exceeds fifty lakh of rupees; or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to se....
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....ars mentioned in the mahazar it exceeds Rs. 1/- Crore (One Crore). Therefore, it is held that the alleged offences registered against the petitioner is cognizable and non bailable one. 22. In this case, the learned counsel for the petitioner has taken contention that the arrest petitioner and seizer of gold is not in accordance with law. In this regard, he strongly relied on the Judgment of Hon'ble High Court of Bombay and other Hon'ble High Courts, wherein their lordship have examined and assessed the material and also seized the material after Trial, wherein, accused was convicted before Trial Court. But in present case, investigation is under process. Therefore, the Judgment relied by the learned counsel for the petitioner can be relied after Trial, not at investigation stage. 23. In this case, the custom Department has issued guidelines for arrest and bail relating to offence punishable under Customs Act in Circular bg. No. CBEC Circular No.38, dated 17.09.2023, same are reiterated as under:- Circular No. 38/2013-Customs dated 17th September 2013 Subject -Guidelines for Arrest and Bail in relation to offences punishable under Customs Act, 1962-reg. ....
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....The decision to arrest should be taken in cases which fulfil the requirement of the provisions of Section 104 (1) of Customs Act, 1962 and after considering the nature of offence, the role of the person involved and evidence available. 2.3 While the Act does not specify any value limits for exercising the powers of arrest, it is clarified that arrest in respect of an offence, categorized as bailable offence, should be effected only in exceptional situations which may include: (a) Outright smuggling of high value goods such as precious metal, restricted items or prohibited items or goods notified under section 123 of the Customs Act, 1962 or foreign currency where the value of offending goods exceeds Rs. 20 lakh. (b) In a case related to importation of trade goods (i.e. appraising cases) involving wilful mis-declaration in description of goods/concealment of goods/goods covered under section 123 of Customs Act, 1962 with a view to import restricted or prohibited items and where the CIF value of the offending goods exceeds Rs. 50 lakh. 2.4 There is no prescribed format for arrest memo but an arrest memo must be in compliance with the directions in ....
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....Police Station under the Cr.PC. Thus, a Customs officer (arresting officer) is bound to release a person on bail for offences categorized as bailable under the Customs Act, 1962. Thus, release on bail must be offered to a person arrested in respect of bailable offence and bail bond accepted for bailable offence. The amount of bail bond/ surety for bailable offences should not be excessive and the bail conditions should be informed by the arresting officer in writing to the arrestee and also informed on telephone to the nominated person (as per details provided by the arrestee) and the arrestee should be also allowed to talk to nominated person. If the conditions of the bail are fulfilled by the arrestee, he shall be released by the officer concerned on bail forthwith. The arresting officer may, and shall if such a person is indigent and unable to furnish surety, instead of taking bail from such person, discharge him or her executing a bond without sureties for his appearance as provided under Section 436 of Cr.PC. However, only in cases where the conditions for granting bail are not fulfilled, the arrestee shall be produced before the appropriate Magistrate without unnecessary dela....
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....e concerned officer has not disclosed her designation. Therefore, this Court gone through the Annexure A to C produced by respondents along with their objections. According to Annexure-A, respondent official have put specific question at Question No.3 wherein she has stated as under:- Question No.3:-Please state the places you have visited abroad in the recent past and the number of times you have traveled to those places: Ans: I have travelled to Europe, America and Middle East and have visited Dubai, Saudi Arabia. I wish to state that I am tired at present as I did not get enough rest for myself. I would request you to take forward the statement proceedings in the morning as I would like to rest for a while. 28. I have carefully gone through Annexure-C. The senior Intelligence Officer Smt. Neha Kumari issued notice prior to personal search and also informed about the legal rights of the petitioner. The petitioner has received the said notice and given her consent in writing, to conduct her personal body search lady Gazetted Officer of the DRI. Accordingly, the SIO has conducted personal search at Customs arrival hall of the KIA, Bengaluru. 29. In the cours....
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....gard, the learned counsel for the petitioner himself produced one document. It clearly discloses that one Shri. Dheeraj Kumar approved Valuer for Customs, he has valued the seized articles and he opined that 17 pieces of gold for weightage of 14213.050 gms net weight of gold. The learned counsel for the petitioner argued that there is no mark or bar of foreign goods. Therefore, this Court gone through the photos affixed in the mahazar and on careful perusal, the bars itself discloses that the said bars are exported from foreign country. This question is not required for detail appreciation at this stage. On considering all these aspects, I am of the opinion that there is no violation of law and directions. 33. In this case, the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as the respondent have mainly relied on the recent Judgment of Hon'ble Apex Court rendered in Radhika Agarwal Vs. Union of India [2025 SCC Online SC 447]. wherein at para No. 43 and 44 their lordship held as under:- Para No. 43: Secondly, the fact that Section 104 (1) does not explicity require a customs officer to have "material in their possession" does not imply that a customs officer can conclude tha....
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....f is one code for search, seizer and arrest. Therefore, it is procedure followed by the respondent officer while personal search of petitioner and seizer of Gold bars by drawing mahazar is in accordance with law and circular. 35. The learned counsel for the petitioner has taken contention that the petitioner being lady she is entitled for grant of bail as per Section 482 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita-2023. Admittedly, the alleged offence is not punishable with death or imprisonment for life, but this is an Economic offence, it requires access with the materials, compared to other offences, more particularly offence punishable U/s.BNS-2023. At this stage, this Court relied on the Judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court of India rendered in State of Gujarat Vs. Mohan Lal Jethani lang Polwal & Ors's case, [AIR 1987 SC 1321 wherein their lordship has held as under:- The entire Community is aggrieved if the economic offenders who ruin the economy of the State are not brought to books. A murder may be committed in the heat of moment upon passions being aroused. An economic offence is committed with cool calculation and deliberate design with an eye on personal profit regardless of the....