TMI BlogArrestX X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ms waters has committed an offence punishable under section 132 or section 133 or section 135 or section 135A or section 136, he may arrest such person and shall, as soon as may be, inform him of the grounds for such arrest. Also, every arrested person arrested under sub-section (1) shall, has to be taken without unnecessary delay to the nearest Magistrate. Further, the arrested person is to be dealt with by the Magistrate, as per the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898. The power to remand an arrested person to judicial custody vests in the Magistrate by virtue of Section 165 of the Cr.PC. 10.3 Though under Section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962 Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs are empowered to d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... than commercial fraud cases warranting prosecution under Section 135 of the said Act, where arrest is considered necessary prior clearance and approval for arrest may be taken from Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs. However, there could be situations, for example in outright smuggling cases in remote areas (and sometimes even in town seizure or international passenger clearance offence cases) where it may not be administratively possible to get prior permission of concerned Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs before effecting arrest. In such cases, the decision to arrest a person in accordance with the guidelines - taking due note of the offence against the person which has come to light i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... g proper investigation, to prevent such person from absconding, cases involving organised smuggling of goods or evasion of Customs duty by way of concealment, masterminds or key operators effecting proxy/ benami imports/exports in the name of dummy or non-existent persons/IECs, etc. The decision to arrest should be taken in cases which fulfil the requirement of the provisions of Section 104(1) of Customs Act, 1962 and after considering the nature of offence, the role of the person involved and evidence available. iii. While the Act does not specify any value limits for exercising the powers of arrest, it is clarified that arrest in respect of an offence, should be effected only in exceptional situations which may include: a. Cases inv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... offending goods is Rs. 2,00,00,000/- (Rupees Two Crore) or more. f. Cases involving obtaining an instrument from any authority by fraud, collusion, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts and utilisation of such instrument where the duty relatable to such utilisation of the instrument is Rs 2,00,00,000/- (Rupees Two Crore) or more. g. The above criteria of value mentioned in (a) (f) would not apply in cases involving offences relating to items i.e. FICN, arms, ammunitions and explosives, antiques, art treasures, wild life items and endangered species of flora and fauna. In such cases, arrest, if required, on the basis of facts and circumstances of the case, may be considered irrespective of value of offending goods involved. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nder the Customs Act, 1962 and release on bail must be offered to a person arrested in respect of bailable offence and bail bond accepted. If the conditions of the bail are fulfilled, the arrestee shall be released on bail forthwith. The arresting officer may, and shall if such a person is indigent and unable to furnish surety, instead of taking bail from such person, discharge him or her executing a bond without sureties for his appearance as provided under Section 436 of Cr.PC.in cases where the conditions for granting bail are not fulfilled, the arrestee shall be produced before the appropriate Magistrate without unnecessary delay and within 24 hours of arrest. [Refer Instruction F.No.394/71/97-Cus(AS), dated 22-6-1999 and Circular ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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