BHIKHALAL NANJIBHAI Vs. COLLECTOR AMRELI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard the learned counsel for the parties.

(2.) The petitioner is challenging by this Special Civil Application the order dated 28th January, 1983, Annexure 'C' of the Assistant Collector, Amreli, passed under Sec. 6-A of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, Forfeiting 183.5 bags of cement, and the order of the appellate authority confirming the said order.

(3.) The appeal has been dismissed only on the ground that it is barred by time. It was the case of the petitioner that 183.5 bags of cement were lying at his house which belonged to the Government. He was given the contract of the construction of Laboratory building by the P.W.D. and it had supplied 200 bags of cement for the said work. The unutilised 183 bags of cement were kept in his house as there was no adequate facility for storing the cement at site. The Assistant Collector, Amreli, has recorded a finding of fact that the petitioner kept at home 183.5 bags of cement which were supplied by D.E. (R&B) for Library building construction work at Untwad. So it is a finding of fact that these 183.5 cement bags were of the Government given to the petitioner for the Government work. The Assistant Collector, Amreli found fault with the petitioner that he ought to have stored the cement given to him by the Government at site and in case it was required to be stored elsewhere he ought to have taken prior permission from the competent authority, which he had not obtained. On the basis of this finding, the Assistant Collector, Amreli, has drawn an inference that there are sufficient reasons to believe that such a big stock was collected with a view to earn big profit with a malafide intention. I do not find any material on record to support this finding of the Assistant Collector, Amreli. Once it has accepted that 183.5 bags belonged to the Government which had been given to the petitioner by the Government for Government work, it is difficult to accept that there is a contravention of Clause 18 of the Gujarat Cement (Licensing and Control) Order, 1978.