SIKKIM SUBBA ASSOCIATES Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE two writ petitions involved almost the same and similar common question of facts and law and, as such, this Court proposes to dispose of these two writ petitions by this common judgment.

(2.) THESE two writ petitions are directed against the issuance of warrant of authorisation dt. 17th June, 1999 to 23rd June, 1999, including warrant of authorisation dt. 18th June, 1999, by the respondents against the petitioners under Section 132 of the IT Act, 1961, hereinafter referred to as the 'Act', for conducting search and seizure in the premises of the petitioners and the consequent issuance of impugned notice dt. 20th Feb., 2001 under Section 158BC of the Act directing the petitioners to file returns, etc., by treating the search and seizure operations as valid; for which the petitioners have, inter alia, prayed that such warrant of authorisation and the impugned notices dt. 20th Feb., 2001 issued under Section 158BC of the Act, be quashed as the same is unconstitutional, illegal and void ab initio and consequently, the petitioners have also prayed that the documents/valuables, etc., recovered from them during the impugned illegal search and seizure operations carried out by the respondents be returned to them.

(3.) IN Writ Petn. No. 11 of 2004, the facts whereof are identical, it is stated that the petitioner -company is a private limited company incorporated and registered under the Registration of Company Act (Sikkim), 1961, and is having its registered office at Syari, Gangtok, Sikkim. The petitioner -company was incorporated with the object of undertaking hotel construction at Gangtok. It is stated that during the relevant period, Smt. Jyoti Limbu, Shri S.R. Subba (brother of Shri M.K. Subba) and Shri M.K. Subba were directors of petitioner -company. Smt. Jyoti Limbu is wife of Shri M.K. Subba and was/is the managing partner of the firm, M/s M.S. Associates. M/s M.S. Associates carries on business of selling State organised lotteries. Since 28th Sept., 1993, the said M/s M.S. Associates was the sole distributor of lotteries organised by State of Nagaland. In this case also, on different dates in the month of June 1999, namely, 17th to 23rd by different warrant of authorisation issued by the respondent Nos. 3 to 5 purportedly acting under Section 132 of the Act, the business premises of M/s M.S. Associates as well as the residence and official premises of persons allegedly associated with this firm including the petitioner -company were searched at Gangtok pursuant to the warrant of authorisation dt. 18th June, 1999 and amount of cash, jewellery, investment certificates, fixed deposit receipts and other documents were seized, which is evident from the Panchnama dt. 23rd June, 1999.