KARAMJEET SINGH Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These revisions arise out of identical proceedings of confiscation of diesel and vehicles pursuant to seizures effected by the officers of the District Food and Civil Supplies Department, Sri Gahganagar under the provisions of the E.C. Act on different dates. Since identical questions of facts and law are involved in these revisions, the same are being decided by this common order. Enforcement Officers working under the District Supply Officer, Sri Gahganagar seized diesel exceeding 1,000 ltrs. from different vehicles owned by the present petitioners on different dates under the provisions of Rajasthan Petroleum Products (Licensing and Control) Order, 1990 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Order of 1990') and Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel (Regulation of Supply, Distribution and Prevention of Malpractices) Order, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as "the Order of 2005"). Proceedings under Sec. 6A of the Essential Commodities Act were instituted before the District Collector, Sri Ganganagar for confiscation of the seized vehicles as well as the seized diesel. The District Collector confiscated the vehicles and directed that the same shall be released to the respective registered owners upon depositing the fine 'quantified' in each case. The seized diesel was also directed to be confiscated and auctioned. The petitioners preferred appeals against the orders of confiscation which too have been decided against them by the learned Sessions Judge, Sri Ganganagar upon which, these revisions have been preferred. The details of the orders passed in the various matters are noted hereinabove:

(2.) Shri Sandhu and Shri Jain, learned counsel representing the petitioners, placed reliance on the judgment rendered by this Court in the case of Jangir Singh & Ors. vs. State of Rajasthan reported in : 2014 (2) Cr.L.R. 942 and urged that the controversy involved herein is squarely covered by the ratio of the aforesaid judgment and thus, the revisions deserve to be allowed and the orders of confiscation of the vehicles as well as diesel passed by the District Collector and the appellate Court's orders deserve to be quashed and set aside. They contend that the subject matter of the seizure is covered by two Control orders issued by the Government of India;

(3.) These orders as well as the State Government's Control Order of 1990 have all been issued under Sec. 3 of the E.C. Act. They submit that the Central Government's Control Orders would have an over -riding effect on a Control order issued by the State Government as they all cover the same subject. They rely on the notification dated 10.4.2006 issued by the State Government under the Control Order, 2005 whereby, officers not below the rank of Additional DSO have been authorised to take action under the said Control Order. They further contended that under the Control Order of 1999, retail sale of petroleum products upto 2500 ltrs. is permissible to one person at a time. Thus, they contend that the restrict in contained in the State Government's Control order, 1990 putting a cap of 1,000 ltrs. on possession, storage and sale of petroleum products runs contrary to the Central Government Control Orders. They urged that admittedly the seizures in question were made by the Enforcement Officers who are not authorised to act under the Central Government's Control Orders, 2005 and 1999 and therefore, the whole search and seizure proceedings are vitiated and consequently, the orders of confiscation passed by the District Collector and the appellate Court's orders are totally illegal and deserve to be set aside. They further contend that the diesel was seized while it was in the process of being transported and therefore also, the Control Order of 1990, which only deals with storage, has no application to the cases at hand.