STATE Vs. TRAIMBAKLAL MEHETA AND ANR.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ALL the above mentioned eight Government Appeals were taken up in a bunch for hearing the Respondents (accused persons in the Court below) in all these appeals are the same, one set of argument was advanced by counsel appearing for both the parties, the same question of law is involved in all the appeals and the acts alleged against the accused persons are similar in all the cases and are not disputed. These eight appeals, therefore, are disposed of by this, one judgment.

(2.) EIGHT separate cases were instituted against the accused persons for exporting outside the State of Orissa thinner solvent, a mixture containing 90% of denatured spirit to different customers on different dates and in different quantities without obtaining the pass for the same as required under Section 12(1) of the Bihar & Orissa Excise Act (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act '). According to the prosecution, the aforesaid act of the accused persons contravened the provisions of Section 12(1) of the Act and so the accused persons were liable to be punished under Section 47(a) of the Act. In all the eight cases the trial Court found the accused persons guilty under Section 47(a) of the Act, and sentenced each of them thereunder to pay a fine of Rs. 100/ - in each case, in default to undergo S.I. for one month. The accused persons preferred Criminal Appeals Nos. 125 to 127 of 1971 and 129 to 133 of 1971, and the learned Sessions Judge, Balasore, by his identically similar judgments in all the cases, excepting the details therein about the place of export, the name of the consignee and the quantity of the said solvent exported, acquitted the accused persons on the finding that the accused persons had no criminal intention or mens rea in exporting the said intoxicant, and so they could not be held guilty for on offence under Section 47 of the Act. The learned Sessions Judge has of course found that the "thinner solvent" exported by the accused persons was manufactured by the Kalinga Chemicals at Balasore, of which the accused persons were the partners; that the accused persons did not contest the fact that they deported thinner solvent manufactured in the Kalinga Chemicals without a pass; and that the thinner solvent sold and exported by the accused persons comes within the definition of "intoxicant" in the Act and so far exporting that intoxicant the accused persons were required to obtain a pass from a competent authority as provided under Section 12(1) of the Act. That Court has also found that as the accused persons exported thinner solvent without obtaining the requisite pass, they ordinarily speaking, violated the provisions of Section 12 of the Act, and so were liable under Section 47(a) of the Act, but as they did not have the requisite mens rea in doing that act, they did not commit any offence.

(3.) THE accused persons have admitted that they were the partners of the Kalinga Chemicals at Balasore and in that capacity they on different dates sold to different firms outside Orissa "thinner solvent" in different quantities and exported the same, outside Orissa to those purchasers. They further pleaded that the Excise authorities very often inspected their records and registers and were well aware of the said export of 'thinner solvent ' to different firms of different dates outside the State of Orissa, but they never demanded excise duty of[ the same, nor did they ever ask the accused persons to produce any pass for the export of the said article. The stand taken by them in the trial Court, that the 'thinner solvent ' manufactured in the Kalinga Chemicals was a chemical product and was not on 'intoxicant ' and so it did not require any pass for them to export such on article, has been given up at this stage, as Mr. Misra for the Respondents fairly stated at the outset that he would not canvass such a proposition and would not contest the findings of the two Courts below to that effect.