Do Officer have power of Officer to seize the Mobile Phones?
The first and foremost thing that officers do in various cases of investigation is the seizure of the Mobile Phones. The laws like IPC operate on a different footing which is different from the tax laws.
There was an interesting case before the Gujarat High Court in the case of Prakashsinh Hathisinh Udavat vs State of Gujarat, (2019) 112 taxmanncom 124 on the power of the GST authorities as far as the GST is concerned.
One may note that the right to seize is the right of personal liberty embedded in the Constitution and so it is subject to various restrictions and regulations.
In GST, one may note that section 67(2) provides that the Officer not below the Rank of Joint Commissioner may authorize in writing any other officer to search and seize such
- Goods;
- Documents;
- Books; or
- Things.
The “Thing” is a word of vast power and may extend to mobile as well. However, the exercise of Powers under section 83 to attach Property is dependent upon the condition that any proceeding should be pending under any of the following sections:
S.62
S.63
S.64
S.67
S.73
S.74
Both the above conditions need to be satisfied simultaneously before the power is exercised. If both the conditions are satisfied, then the power of seizure is exercised.