SUBHASCHANDRA BALCHANDRA BADJATE Vs. THE DIRECTOR GENERAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petition is filed for relief of declaration that the arrest of the petitioner was illegal, the seizure of amount of Rs. 45 lakh from possession of the petitioner was illegal and the proceeding like adjudication under the Central Excise Act cannot be held against the petitioner. Relief of return of the aforesaid amount seized by the officers of the Central Excise is also claimed. Both the sides are heard.

(2.) The petitioner is share holder of majority shares of one private company by name M/s Rutuja Ispat Private Limited Company situated at Jalna, Maharashtra". Shri. Shailesh Badjate and Shri. Sushil Badjate, two sons of the present petitioner, are the Directors of the company and on the record they are conducting the business of this company. The petitioner and his two sons are living in the same premises situated in Jalna where the office of the company is also situated.

(3.) There was specific information to the officers of the Directorate General of Central Excise (Intelligence) Regional Unit Pune that aforesaid company was evading Central Excise Duty by not maintaining account of manufacturing of MS/TNT Bars and it was involved in clandestine removal of this product from the factory premises without payment of Central Excise duty. There was also information that this company was purchasing unaccounted MS ingots and billets for manufacturing of the aforesaid product. There was information that though this activity was not accounted in the returns, a separate record was prepared about the unaccounted manufacture, sale etc. of the aforesaid product and that record was available in the pen-drive and in the computer of the petitioner and his sons.