RAYJADA AJAYSINH CHAKUBHA Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has preferred this petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India to get the custody of muddamal vehicle being Maruti Swift Dzire VDI having registration number GJ-10-DA-0737, which is seized by police in connection with FIR being Prohibition C.R.No. III-221 of 2019 registered with Vartej Police Station, District : Bhavnagar for offences punishable under sections 65(A)(E), 98(2), 116-B and 81 etc. of the Gujarat Prohibition Act.

(2.) Learned advocate for the applicant submits that the petitioner is a registered owner of the mudammal vehicle. He further submits that the petitioner is not named in the FIR and is not arraigned as an accused in the offence. Under instructions, he submits that the applicant has no criminal antecedents. He further submits that considering the ratio laid down by the Supreme Court in case of Sudarbhai Ambalal Desai vs. State of Gujarat , 2003 AIR(SC) 638, the vehicle may be released.

(3.) Learned advocate for the petitioner, submits that the petitioner being the owner of muddamal vehicle moved an application under section 451 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 ['the code for short] before the learned 7th Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bhavnagar for interim custody of the vehicle during the pendency of the Trial of the case. The learned Magistrate, by his order dated 13.08.2020, rejected the application essentially on the ground of bar contained in section 98(1) of the Prohibition Act and the quantum of sentence prescribed for the offence. However, the petitioner did not assail the order of the learned Magistrate by preferring the Criminal Revision Application in the Sessions Court and has directly approached this Court with the present petition.