RAJESH SUNDERDAS LALCHANDANI Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS criminal writ petition is filed by the brother of a detenu Jagdish Kumar Sunderlal Lalchandani @ Anil Mohanlal Bhatia, to challenge an order of detention issued on 11-3-1997 by the respondent No. 2-Secretary to the Government of Maharashtra, Home Department (Special) Mantralaya, Mumbai. The respondent No. 2 in exercise of his powers under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (52 of 1974), issued the impugned order and the same was served with the order of detention along with grounds on the detenue on 23-4-1997.

(2.) THE grounds of detention, inter alia, recite that on 22-6-1996 detenue was apprehended as one of the passengers who arrived by Air India flight No. AI-409 from Singapore at Sahar International Airport, Mumbai by the officers of the Preventive wing of Customs Preventive Commissionerate, Mumbai, on specific prior information.

(3.) THE detenue and two others were escorted to Customs office at Bandra, along with their baggages. When the bags were examined, goods of foreign origin valued at Rs. 4,37,500 were recovered from the detenue and they were seized under the panchanama dated 22-6-1996 under the provisions of Customs Act, 1962. In the statement recorded under section 108 of the Customs Act, 1962 on 22-10-1996 the detenue stated that he returned from Singapore by the flight and walked through the Green Channel without paying any amount of duty at the customs along with his friend Kamalesh Girdharilal Hotwani and while going out of the Airport, he met his uncle Shankar Bhatia and when were to hire a Taxi, they were apprehended by the Customs Officer. In his further examination recorded on 15-10-1996, the detenue confirmed that he said in his statement on 22-6-1996 and stated further that he visited Singapore ten times in the past and in each of the trips he had brought goods of foreign origin valued to One to One and half crores and the goods were brought by him for himself, for Shankar Bhatia and for his friend from 5-2-1996 to 18-6-1996.