TMI Blog1985 (10) TMI 231X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nalty of Rs. 1,95,000/-by his order dated 3.7.84. The Additional Collector also cancelled the certified goldsmith s licence. 3. Being aggrieved by the order, the appellants preferred an appeal before this Tribunal on 1-10-1984. It appears the registry by its letter dated 11.10.84 returned the papers to the appellant observing that in view of the Tribunal s order dated 25-11-1983, in GC(T)(BOM) A No. 2/1982, no appeal could lie to the Tribunal against the order passed by the Additional Collector. 4. Thereafter, the appellant preferred an appeal before the Collector (Appeals), Bombay. The Collector (Appeals) by the impugned order dismissed the appeal as having been improperly filed but advised the appellant to file an appeal before the Tribunal within 30 days from the date of issue of this order. 5. Having regard to the order passed by the Collector (Appeals) the appellants preferred two appeals G.C. Nos. 57/85 and 58/85 along with two miscellaneous applications for condonation of delay. 6. The Miscellaneous applications and the two appeals were rejected by this Bench. The Bench rejected the appeal No. 57/85 as the same was filed against a letter issued by a Superintendent wh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and had not considered the question of jurisdiction independently. 9. Shri Mehta further contended the Notification relied upon by the Collector (Appeals) has not the effect of nullifying the order passed by the Tribunal in CD(T)(BOM) 2/82. Shri Mehta urged the effect of deletion of the Addl. Collector in the Notification is that the Addl. Collector will have no jurisdiction to adjudicate and it will not have the effect of equating the Addl. Collector with the Collector. Shri Mehta contended that Section 78 has not been amended. 10. After referring to the definitions of the adjudicating authority , Gold Control Officer and the power of the Central Govt. to appoint Gold Control Officer under the Act, Shri Mehta contended that the Addl. Collector ceased to be a Gold Control Officer and was divested with the power of adjudication. He urged that jurisdiction has to be conferred by a statute by express provision and that jurisdiction cannot be inferred or implied. Shri Mehta finally contended that the appellant s licence also has been cancelled and he is deprived of his means of livelihood, and therefore the Tribunal should issue necessary directions to the Collector (Appeals) n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the Act. Sub-section (4) of Section 4 reads:- The Administrator may authorise such person as he thinks fit to also exercise all or any of the powers exercisable by him under this Act other than. the powers under sub-section (6) of this section and different persons may be authorised to exercise different powers. Sub-section (7) of Section 4 reads :- A Gold Control Officer shall, subject to such limitations, restrictions and conditions as the Central Government may think fit to impose, exercise such powers and discharge such functions as are specified or conferred, as the case may be, by or under this Act. Section 78 which provides for adjudication reads :- Any confiscation may be adjudged or penalty may be imposed under this Act - (a) without limit, by a Gold Control Officer not below the rank of a Collector of Central Excise or of Customs; (b) subject to such limits as may be specified in this behalf, by such other Gold Control Officer, not below the rank of a Superintendent of Central Excise, as the Central Government, may, by notification, authorise in this behalf." Section 80 which provides for appeals to the Collector (Appeals) reads : Any perso ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on No. S.O. 417(E), dated 6.6.84, the item 3 in the Notification dated 27th December 1980 has been deleted. Now coming to the order of the Collector (Appeals), the operative portion reads:- The Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, New Delhi has, however, communicated in its letter F.No. 116/75/83-GOI, dated 27/31.7.84 (Circular No. 2/84) that an amendment having been carried out by Notification No. S.O. 417(E), dated 6.6.84 to the earlier Notification, appeal against the order of an Additional Collector of Customs/Central Excise, under the Gold Control Act shall continue, to lie with the Customs, Central Excise and Gold Control Appellate Tribunal as hitherto communicated in the Ministry s D.O. letter No. 131/159/81-C.C.II, dated 11-12-1982. The undersigned is, therefore, not the authority competent to hear this appeal which is against the order of the Additional Collector of Customs and Central Excise, Rajkot. The appeal is, accordingly, dismissed for having been improperly filed. The appellant, is however, advised to file an appeal before the Customs, Central Excise and Gold Control, Appellate Tribunal, Western Regional Bench, at Bombay within ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... functions would amount to interference in its independent exercise of its powers. The quasi-judicial Tribunal is well within its right to ignore such administrative instructions. In this connection, I may usefully refer to the observations of the Supreme Court reported in the E.L.T. (J 345) = AIR 1969 Supreme Court Page 48 Orient Paper Mills Ltd. v. Union of India. The Supreme Court observed :- No authority however high placed and control the decision of a judicial or quasi-judicial Authority that is the essence of our judicial system. It is true that the Assessing Authorities as well as the Appellate Authorities are Judges in their own cause, yet when they are called upon to decide dispute arising under the Act they must act independently and impartially. They cannot be said to act independently if their judgment is controlled by the Direction given by others. Thus it is a misnomer to call their orders as their judgments, they would essentially be the judgment of the authority that gave the directions and which authority had given those judgments without hearing the aggrieved party. That in exercising their authority and in discharging the quasi-judicial function the Tribuna ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the party. He directs the appellant to present the appeal before the Tribunal within 30 days from the date of issue of his order. He arrogates himself to the status of a superior Tribunal. Further, once the appeal has been dismissed, the question of granting time to file an appeal before the superior tribunal or giving a gratituous advice as to where the appeal should lie would not be within the province of the Collector (Appeals). 20. While dealing with the binding nature of the law declared by High Court on all subordinate courts and Tribunals, the Supreme Court in East India Commercial Co. Ltd. v. Collector of Customs, Calcutta (Reported in 1983 E.L.T. page 1342) observed : It would be anomalous to suggest that a tribunal over which the High Court has superintendence can ignore the law declared by that court and start proceedings in direction violation of it. If a tribunal can do so, all the subordinate courts can equally do so, for there is no specific provision, just like in case of Supreme Court, making the law declared by the High Court binding on subordinate courts. It is implicit in the power of supervision conferred on a superior tribunal that all the tribunals subje ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dated 27-12-1980 and that the Central Government by Notification No. S.O. 17(E), dated 6-8-1984 amended the earlier notification, thereby the limits placed on the Additional Collector has been deleted. After the deletion the Additional Collector s power of adjudication is unlimited. Therefore, against his order the appeal would lie to the tribunal and not to the Collector (Appeals). Shri Senthivel had further contended that in the matter of adjudication the Additional Collector should be treated as the Collector and for this purpose the definitions given in the parent Acts of the expression Collector should be taken into consideration. It was also urged by Shri Senthivel by Notification No S.O. 2319 dated 29,6.68 the Central Government had appointed all officers of the Central Excise of and above the rank of sub-Inspectors, and all officers of the Customs of and above the Preventive Officers as Gold Control Officers. By virtue of the said notification, the Additional Collector of Customs as well as Central Excise could exercise the powers conferred on the Collector under the Gold (Control) Act. 25. As has been noticed earlier power has been conferred on the Central Government ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ity as an Additional Collector of Central Excise. In considering the question whether the Additional Collector of Central Excise exercising powers as a Gold Control Officer is an officer lower in rank than the Collector, one has to look into the provisions of the Gold (Control) Act and not to the provisions of Central Excise or the Customs Act. It may be pointed out that it is for the purposes of those two Acts the expression Collector included the Additional Collector. In S. Kumar Others v. the Collector of Central Excise Others (1983 E.L.T. 1057) (CEGAT) it was argued before the larger Bench that the Additional Collector of Central Excise is an officer lower in rank than the Collector. In support of this contention, two decisions of the Supreme Court reported in AIR 1965 S.C. 1619 and AIR 1969 S.C. 483 were relied upon. These two decisions were considered by the larger Bench on page 1078 at paragraph 84 and 85. It reads : The authorities are AIR 1965 SC 1619 (Ajaib Singh v. Gurbachan Singh) where it was held that no officer below the rank of a District Magistrate can exercise the power of detention, and that an Additional District Magistrate , vested with the powers of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e order passed by the Collector (Appeals) and direct the Collector (Appeals) to take on file the appeal filed by the appellant herein and dispose of the same on merits. 29. On behalf of the appellant Shri Mehta had pleaded that the Additional Collector besides imposing a penalty and ordering confiscation of gold ornaments had cancelled the certificates issued to the appellant, as a result ever since the date of order of the Additional Collector, namely, 3.7.84 the appellant is deprived of his means of livelihood. He has prayed for stay of operation of that part of the order or in the alternative to direct the Collector (Appeals) to grant a stay of that part of the order or in the alternative to direct the Collector (Appeals) to dispose of the appeal by fixing a time schedule for the disposal of the appeal by the Collector (Appeals). Since we are not considering the appeal filed against the order of the Additional Collector we do not thin it proper to issue any stay order at our level. Suffice if you observe that that part of the order of the Additional Collector by which he cancelled the goldsmith certificate is wholly without the jurisdiction. The power of cancellation or suspen ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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