Ashok Kumar Jalan And Anr vs Union Of India & Anr
2022 Latest Caselaw 6750 Cal

20.09.2022
Item No.22
 Suman
  Ct.42



                    CRR 3002 of 2022



                Ashok Kumar Jalan and Anr.
                             Vs.
                   Union of India & Anr.



             Mr. Ashish Batra
             Mr. Satadru Lahiri
             Mr. Debaditya Banerjee
             Mr.Syed Wasim Farooq
             Mr. Safdar Azam
                               ..for the petitioner

             Mr. Partha Chakraborty
                         ..for the Union of India

             Mr. Kasushik Dey
                        ...for the respondent

The issue that is germane in the instant

revision is as to whether a criminal complaint

being C.S. 46765 of 2019 under Sections 135 (1)

(a)(i)(A) and 135(1)(b)(i)(A) of the Customs Act

is liable to be quashed in view of final adjudication

by the Adjudicating Authority exonerating the

petitioner from the alleged offence.

In support of his contention learned

advocate for the petitioner refers to a decision of

the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Radheshyam

Kejriwal versus State of West Bengal and

another reported in (2011) 3 SCC 581. In

paragraph 38 of the said judgment the Hon'ble

Supreme Court has culled out the following

guidelines:-

"38. The ratio which can be culled out from

these decisions can broadly be stated as follows:

(i) Adjudication proceedings and

criminal prosecution can be

launched simultaneously;

      (ii)     Decision          in          adjudication

               proceedings       is    not     necessary

               before          initiating        criminal

               prosecution;

      (iii)    Adjudication       proceedings            and

               criminal         proceedings               are

               independent      in    nature    to       each

               other;

      (iv)     The   finding    against      the person

               facing     prosecution          in         the

               adjudication     proceedings         is    not

binding on the proceedings for

criminal prosecution;

(v) Adjudication proceedings by the

Enforcement Directorate is not

prosecution by a competent court

of law to attract the provisions of

Article 20(2) of the Constitution or

Section 300 of the Code of

Criminal Procedure;

(vi) The finding in the adjudication

proceedings in favour of the person

facing trial for identical violation

will depend upon the nature of

finding. If the exoneration in

adjudication proceedings is on

technical ground and not on merit,

prosecution may continue; and

(vii) In case of exoneration, however,

on merits where the allegation is

found to be not sustainable at all

and the person held innocent,

criminal prosecution on the same

set of facts and circumstances

cannot be allowed to continue, the

underlying principle being the

higher standard of proof in criminal

cases."

Since the petitioners have been exonerated by the

Adjudicating Authority, the issue as to maintainability of

the instant revision is to be looked in the instant

revision.

Therefore, the instant revision be admitted.

Since the opposite parties have already

entered appearance, the learned advocate on

record on behalf of the petitioners is requested to

serve copy of the revisional application in course

of this day to the learned advocates for the

opposite parties. It is submitted by the learned

advocate on record that the above direction has

already been complied with.

In the meantime, further proceedings in

connection with Criminal Complaint Case No. C.S.

46765 of 2019 be stayed till 31st December, 2022.

(Bibek Chaudhuri, J.)