ANILMA ASSOCIATES Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner No.1(hereinafter referred to as `the petitioner firm'), which is a partnership firm, engaged in the manufacture and supply of power and control cables as well as telecommunication cables , has preferred this writ petition against the impugned order dated 29th January, 2002 passed by the Joint Secretary and the Chief Vigilance Officer/ respondent No.2 banning the petitioner firm for a period five years with effect from 29th January, 2002 from having any commercial/business dealings with all departments/Ministries/offices of the Government of India. Before passing this order, the respondent no.2 had served a show cause notice dated 7th September, 1999 at the instance of the DGS&D to ban the petitioner firm on the alleged ground of evasion of excise duty. It is not in dispute that most of the supplies of the petitioner firm are with the Government departments, namely, the Railways, DGS&D and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited.

(2.) Brief facts, as disclosed by the petitioner firm, which led to passing of the impugned order, may be noted at this stage.

(3.) It is stated in the writ petition that in September, 1996 the officers of the Central Excise department conducted a search in the business premises of the petitioner firm and took away all the relevant records lying therein, including invoices, RT-12 forms and various other files. The petitioner firm voluntarily deposited a sum of Rs.55 lacs towards excise duty with the Central Excise department in September, 1997. However, on 13th February, 1998 a show cause notice was issued by the Commissioner of Central Excise ( for short ` the CCE') directing the petitioner firm to pay excise duty of Rs.63,50,509/- besides calling upon it to show cause why the penalties be not imposed upon it on the alleged ground of evasion of excise duty. It is a detailed show cause running into 21 pages wherein the manner in which the excise duty was evaded by the petitioner firm was elaborately spelt out. Para 29 of this show cause notice wherein action was proposed, is in the following terms: