Page 125 - ELT_1st July 2020_Vol 373_Part 1

2020 ] NITAI CHANDRA DAS v. STATE OF WEST BENGAL 35

8-2010 issued alert notice regarding detention of fake Indian currency notes
smuggled to India through land Customs borders. Such notice was forwarded to
the Assistant Commissioner of Customs Krishnagar Custom Division. The copy
of the said circular was forwarded to present petitioner-1, the Superintendent of
Customs for compliance. Annexure-P/1 is the copy of the said Circular dated
10th August, 2010.
4. On 18-9-2010 the Janigipur Customs Preventive Unit on the basis of a
specific intelligence/information regarding smuggling of fake currency notes,
formed a team of the officers, to conduct preventive duty at National Highway
34. The present petitioners were the members of that team. Annexure-P/2 is the
copy of the said order. On 8-9-2010 at about 13 hours while the petitioners were
performing their preventive duty at the end of the Ahiran Bridge found two
small vehicles having registration numbers identical to the secret information
were approaching towards Ahiran Bridge. The petitioners stopped both the vehi-
cles and on query the persons of one vehicle having registration No. WB
58L/9949 admitted that they had Rs. 2,00.000/- (Rupees Two Lakh) fake Indian
currency notes and the driver of the other vehicle being No. WB 58K/8736 ad-
mitted that they had Rs. 13,00,000/- (Rupees Thirteen Lakhs). Before the Cus-
toms officials could know the identity of the persons inside the vehicles a group
of persons led by one Assistant Sub-Inspector of Suti Police Station arrived there
and interfered with the process of (raid) preliminary enquiry by the petitioners in
course of discharge of public duty on the plea that they had information that the
vehicles were carrying fire arms. The police personnel forcibly took possession of
both the vehicles and took both the vehicles at Suti Police Station after giving
assurance to the present petitioners to conduct joint search operation of both the
vehicles at the said police station.
5. The petitioners being the Customs officials went to the Suti police
station by their official vehicle. They were not allowed to take part in the search
of the vehicles. They were not allowed to interrogate the persons who were in the
said vehicles and involved in the smuggling of fake Indian currency notes.
6. The petitioners were taken to a room of the police station and kept
them awaiting there. The police personnel informed them that they had recov-
ered some bundles of currency notes. Police personnel of Suti P.S. did not inform
them from whom those currency notes were recovered. The petitioners were not
allowed to inspect the currency notes and to take part in the alleged search oper-
ation. No arms and ammunitions were recovered from the vehicles and the peti-
tioners did not put their signatures on any paper. The petitioners have claimed
that at the relevant point of time they were in official uniform and with official
vehicle to discharge their public duty on the basis of official order. The petition-
ers were confined in a room for a long time. The officer-in-charge in Suti Police
Station asked the petitioners to sign on a paper. From that paper the petitioners
found that complaint was lodged against them. The petitioners refused to put
their signatures on the written complaint and they were not served any copy of
the said complaint. The police personnel of Suti Police Station allowed those ve-
hicles to go without search and seizure of bulk amount of fake Indian Currency
notes. On 19-9-2010 at about 1.00 p.m. the petitioners were informed that they
had been arrested while performing the public duty. The petitioners were pro-
duced before the Learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jangipur. The
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