MOOSA HYDER Vs. ASSISTANT COLLECTOR OF CUSTOMS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Shri S. M. Gupta, the learned Counsel for the petitioners and Shri C. T. George, the learned Senior Counsel for the Customs Department as also Shri M. R. Suryawanshi, the learned Public Prosecutor for thee State.

(2.) Perused the relevant papers which are produced by the Investigating Officer who is present in Court.

(3.) The event occurred on October 30, 1988 when the Officers of the AIr Intelligence Unit of the Bombay air-Port Customs collectorate intercepted absolut ten Omani Nationals on their arrival from muscat by gulf air flight. By that time they had cleared themselves throughout Customs in the Green channel giving "Nil' declaration. each of them was individually questioned before the independent witnesses as to whether they were carrying any contraband articles or gold and the answer was in the emphatic negative. However the said Customs Officers had their own suspicion which proved to be fully justified and the personal search of those persons was effected in the presence of independent persons. Each of them was surprisingly carrying certain gold bars of foreign markings total being 109 gold bars totally weighing 12,709.40 grams valued at Rs. 24,27,495.40 ps. in the International Market and Rs. 40,67,008.00 at the local market. They had obviously used certain camouflage in the matter of carrying those articles inasmuch as some had kept it either in the Chappals or in the specially stiched pockets, in the caps which were worn by them. they also found carrying un-declared valuable goods in their baggages. It may be observed at this juncture that the material discloses that all the baggages had been pulled up together and thus all had association with each other. The split up of the finding of gold on the person of each of those ten people has been specifically mentioned in the remand application as also in the petition and therefore need not be re- stated. Thus for instance some were having 19 gold bars in the maximum while the minimum were having six gold bars.