Chapter VII Chapter VII

Whoever, --- (a) renders fit for human consumption any spirit, which has been denatured; or

(b) has in his possession any spirit in respect of which he knows, or has reason to believe that any such offence has been committed or that an attempt to commit such an offence has been made;

shall on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to three years and with fine which shall not be less than Rs. 10,000 but which may extend to Rs. 1,00,000.

Explanation : -- For the purpose of this section, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, that any spirit which is proved on chemical analysis to contain any quantity or any of the prescribed denaturants, is, or contains, or has been derived from denatured spirit.

Whoever, without lawful authority has in his possession any quantity of an intoxicant knowing the same to have been unlawfully imported, transported, manufactured, cultivated or collected, or knowing the prescribed duty not to have been paid thereon, shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three months but which may extend to three years and with fine which shall not be less than Rs. 10,000 but which may extend to Rs. 1,00,000.

Whoever does any act in contravention of any of the provisions of this Act, or of any rule, notification or order, made, issued or passed thereunder, and not otherwise provided for in this Act, shall, on conviction, be punished with fine which shall not be less than Rs. 2,000 but which may extend to Rs. 20,000.

(1) Whoever, being the holder of a licence for the sale or manufacture of any intoxicant under this Act, or a person in the employ of such holder mixes or permits to be mixed with the intoxicant sold or manufactured by him, any noxious drug or any foreign ingredient likely to add to its actual or apparent intoxicating quality or strength, or any article prohibited by any rule made under this Act, when such admixture does not amount to an offence of adulteration under section 272 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Central Act 45 of 1860) shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one month but which may extend to one year and with fine which shall not be less than Rs. 5,000 but which may extend to Rs. 50,000

(2) Whoever, being the holder of a licence for the sale or manufacture of any intoxicant under this Act, or a person in the employ of such holder, ---

(a) sells or keeps or exposes for sale as foreign liquor, liquor which he knows or has reason to believe to be Indian liquor; or

(b) marks any bottle or the cork of any bottle, case, package, or other receptacle containing Indian liquor, or uses any bottle, case, package or other receptacle containing Indian liquor, with any mark thereon or on the cork thereof, with the intention of causing it to be believed that such bottle, case, package or other receptacle contain foreign liquor, when such act shall not amount to the offence of using a false trade mark with intention to deceive or injure any person under section 482 of the Indian Penal Code (Central Act 45 of 1860); or

(c) sells or keeps or exposes for sale any Indian liquor in a bottle, case, package or other receptacle with any mark thereon or on the cork thereof with the intention of causing it to be believed that such bottle, case, package or other receptacle contains foreign liquor, when such act shall not amount to the offence of selling goods marked with counterfeit trade mark under section 486 of the Indian Penal Code (Central Act 45 of 1860);

shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one month but which may extend to one year and with fine which shall not be less than Rs. 5,000 but which may extend to Rs. 50,000.

(1) A chemist, druggist, apothecary or keeper of a dispensary, who allows any intoxicant which has not been bona fide medicated for medicinal purposes to be consumed on his business premises, by any person shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one month but which may extend to one year and with fine which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees but which may extend to one lakh rupees.

(2) Any person not employed as aforesaid, who consumes any such intoxicant on such premises shall on conviction, be punished with fine which shall not be less than two thousand rupees but which may extend to twenty thousand rupees.

(1) Where any intoxicant has been manufactured or sold or is possessed by any person on account of any other person and such other person known or has reason to believe that such manufacture or sale was or that such possession is, on his account, the article shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to have been manufactured or sold by or to be in the possession of such other person.

(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall absolve any person, who manufactures, sells or has possession of any intoxicant on account of another person from liability to any punishment under this Act for unlawful manufacture, sale or possession of such article.

In prosecutions under section 31 or section 33, it shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, that the accused person has committed the offence punishable under that section in respect of—

(a) any intoxicant; or

(b) any still, utensil, implement or apparatus whatsoever in the manufacture of any intoxicant other than toddy; or

(c) any materials which have undergone any process towards the manufacture of an intoxicant or from which an intoxicant has been manufactured, for the possession of which he is unable to account satisfactorily.

Where any offence under section 31, section 32, section 33, section 35 or section 36 is committed by any person in the employ and acting on behalf of the holder of a licence or permit granted under this Act, such holder shall also be punishable as if he had committed himself the said offence, unless he establishes that all due and reasonable precautions were exercised by him to prevent the commission of such offence:

Provided that no person other than the actual offender shall be punishable under this section with imprisonment, except in default of payment of fine.

If any person, after having been previously convicted of an offence punishable under section 31, section 32, section 33, section 36 or section 37 or under the corresponding provisions of any enactment repealed by this Act, subsequently commits and is convicted of an offence punishable under any of these sections, he shall be liable to twice the punishment which might be imposed on a first conviction under this Act:

Provided that nothing in this section shall prevent any offence which might otherwise have been tried summarily under Chapter XXII of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 from being so tried.

Whenever an offence has been committed which is punishable under this Act, the following things shall be liable to confiscation, namely: -

(a) any intoxicant, materials, still, utensil, implement or apparatus in respect of, or by means of which such offence has been committed;

(b) any intoxicant lawfully imported, transported, or manufactured, and held in possession or sold alongwith, or in addition to, any intoxicant liable to confiscation under clause (a); and

(c) any receptacle, package, or covering in which anything liable to confiscation under clause (a) or clause (b), is found, and the other contents, if any, of such receptacle, package or covering and any animal, vehicle, vessel, raft or other conveyance used for carrying the same;

Provided that, if anything specified in clause (c) is not the property of the offender, it shall not be confiscated if the owner thereof had no reason to believe that such offence was being or was likely to be committed.

(1) Where in any case tried by him, the Magistrate decides that anything is liable to confiscation under section 42, he may either order confiscation or may give the owner of the thing liable to be confiscated an option to pay in lieu of confiscation such fine as the Magistrate thinks fit.

(2) When an offence under this Act has been committed, but the offender not known or cannot be found, or when anything liable to confiscation under this Act, and not in the possession of any person cannot be satisfactorily accounted for, the case shall be inquired into and determined by the Excise Commissioner or by any other officer authorised by the Government in that behalf, who may order such confiscation:

Provided that no such order shall be made until the expiration of one month from the date of seizing the goods intended to be confiscated or without hearing the persons, if any, claiming any right thereto, and the evidence, if any, which they produce, in support of their claims:

Provided further that if the thing in question is liable to speedy and natural decay, or if the Excise Commissioner or by any other officer authorised by the Government in this behalf is of opinion that the sale would be for the benefit of its owner, he may, at any time, direct it to be sold and the provisions of this section shall, as nearly as may be practicable, apply to the net proceeds of such sale.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-sections (1) and (2) or any other law for the time being in force, where any property liable for confiscation under section 42 is seized or detained, the Excise Commissioner or any other officer authorised by the Government in that behalf is satisfied that an offence has been committed against this Act and whether or not a prosecution is instituted for such offence, he may, without prejudice to any other punishment to which the offender is liable under this Act, order confiscation of any property or animal, vessel, cart or other vehicle used in the commission of such offence:

Provided that, before passing an order of confiscation, the owner or the person from whom such property, animal, vessel, cart or other vehicle is seized, shall be given—

(i) a notice in writing informing him of the grounds on which it is proposed to confiscate;

(ii) an opportunity of making a representation in writing within a reasonable time, not exceeding 14 days as may be specified in the notice, against the grounds of confiscation; and

(iii) a reasonable opportunity of being heard in the matter:

Provided further that the owner or the person from whom such property, animal, vessel, or cart or other vehicle is seized shall be given an option to pay, in lieu of its confiscation, an amount not exceeding the market price of such property.

(4) While making an order of confiscation under sub-section (3), the Excise Commissioner or any other officer authorised by the Government may also order that such of the properties to which the order of confiscation relates, which, in his opinion, cannot be preserved or are not fit for human consumption, be destroyed.

(5) Where the Excise Commissioner or any other officer authorised by the Government after passing an order of confiscation under sub-section (3) is of the opinion that it is expedient in the public interest so to do, he may order the confiscated property or any part thereof to be sold by public auction or dispose it of otherwise and the proceeds remitted into the excise revenue account under this Act.

(6) Where the confiscation is ordered by an officer authorised by the Government in this behalf, such officer shall submit a report of all particulars of confiscation to the Excise Commissioner within one month of such confiscation.

(7) Any person aggrieved by an order of confiscation under sub-section (3) may, within one month from the date of the receipt of such order, appeal to the court of session having jurisdiction.

(1) The Excise Commissioner, and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed the Deputy Commissioner, or any other Excise Officer specially empowered in that behalf may accept from any person whose licence or permit is liable to be cancelled or suspended under clause (a) or clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 28 or who is reasonably suspected of having committed an offence under clauses (b) to (h) of section 31, section 32, section 33, section 34, section 35 or sub-section (2) of section 36, a sum of money not exceeding one lakh rupees and subject to such minima as may be prescribed, in lieu of such cancellation or suspension or by way of compensation for the offence which may have been committed, as the case may be; and in all cases in which any property has been seized as liable to confiscation under this Act, may release the same on payment of the value thereof as estimated by such officer.

(2) On the payment of such person of such sum of money or such value or both, as the case may be, such person, if in custody, shall be set at liberty and all the property seized may be released and no proceedings shall be instituted against such person in any Criminal Court. The acceptance of compensation shall be deemed to amount to an acquittal and in no case shall any further proceedings be taken against such person or property with reference to the same act.

Any Excise Officer or other person who vexatiously and without reasonable ground for suspicion --

(a) enters or searches or causes to be entered or searched any closed place under colour of exercising any power conferred by this Act, or

(b) seizes the movable property of any person on the pretext of seizing or searching for any article liable to confiscation under this Act, or

(c) searches, detains or arrests any person, or

(d) in any other way exceeds his lawful powers under this Act,

shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.

Any Excise Officer, who, without lawful excuse shall cease or refuse to perform or withdraws himself from, the duties of his office, unless expressly allowed to do so in writing by the Excise Commissioner, or unless he shall have given to his official superior officer two months’ notice in writing of his intention to do so, or who shall be guilty of cowardice, shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment, which may extend to three months, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.

Any officer or person exercising powers under this Act, who vexatiously and unnecessarily delays forwarding to the nearest Excise Officer or to the officer in charge of the nearest police station as required by sub-section (2) of section 58 any person arrested, shall, on conviction, be punished with fine which may extend to two hundred rupees.

Any officer or person who unlawfully releases or abets the escape of any person arrested under this Act or abets the commission of any offence against this Act, or acts in any manner inconsistent with his duty for the purpose of enabling any person to do anything whereby any of the provisions of this Act may be evaded or contravened or the excise revenue may be defrauded and any officer of any other Department referred to in section 49 who abets the commission of any offence, against this Act in any place, shall, on conviction, for every such offence, be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three months but which may extend to three years and with fine which shall not be less than five thousand rupees but which may extend to fifty thousand rupees.