Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 - Forfeiture of Property Derived From, or Used in, Illicit Traffic

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CHAPTER VA - FORFEITURE OF PROPERTY DERIVED FROM, OR USED IN, ILLICIT TRAFFIC

68A. Application.

            (1)  The provisions of this Chapter shall apply only to the persons specified in sub-section (2).

            (2)  The persons referred to in sub-section (1) are the following, namely –

                        (a)  every person who has  been convicted of an offence punishable under this Act with  imprisonment for a term of five years or more;

                        (b)  every person who has been convicted of a similar offence by a competent court of criminal jurisdiction outside India;

                        (c)  every person in respect of whom an order of detention has been made under the Prevention of IIicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988 (46 of 1988), or under  the Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of IIicit  Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988;

           Provided that such order of  detention  has not been revoked on the report of the Advisory Board  constituted  under  the said Acts or such order of detention has not been set aside by a court of competent jurisdiction;

                        (d)  every person who is a relative of a  person  referred to in clause (a) or clause (b) or clause (c);

                        (e)  every associate of a person referred to in clause (a) or clause (b or clause (c);

                        (f)   any holder (hereafter in this clause referred to  as the "present holder") of  any property which was at any time  previously held by a person referred to in clause (a) or clause (b)  or clause (c) unless the present holder or, as the case may be, any one who held  such  property  after  such  person  and before the present holder, is or was a transferee in good faith for adequate consideration.

68B.  Definitions.

            In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires –

            (a)  "Appellate Tribunal" means the Appellate Tribunal for Forfeited Property constituted under section 68N;

            (b)  "associate" in relation to a person whose property is liable to be forfeited under this Chapter, means –

                   (i)  any individual who had been or is residing in the residential premises (including out-houses) of such person;

                   (ii)  any individual who had been or is managing the affairs or keeping the accounts of such person;

                   (iii)  any association of persons, body of individuals, partnership firm, or private company within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1956 (1of 1956), of which such person had been or is a member, partner or director;

                   (iv)  any individual who had been or is a member, partner or director of an association of persons, body of individuals, partnership firm or  private  company  referred  to in sub-clause (iii) at any time when such person had been or is a member, partner or director of such association, body,  partnership  firm or private company;

                    (v)  any person, who had  been or is managing the affairs, or keeping the accounts, of any association of persons, body of individuals, partnership firm or private company referred to in sub-clause (iii);

                   (vi) the trustee of any trust, where –

                             (1) the trust has been created by such person; or

                             (2) the value of the assets contributed by such person (including the value of  the  assets, if any, contributed by him earlier) to the trust amounts, on the date on which contribution is made, to not less than  twenty per cent. of the value of the assets of the trust on that date;

                    (vii) where the competent authority, for reasons to be recorded in writing, considers that any properties of such person are held on his behalf by any other person, such other person;

            (c)  "competent authority" means an officer of the Central  Government authorised by it under section 68D;

            (d)  "concealment" means the concealment or disguise of the nature, source, disposition, movement or ownership of property and includes the movement or conversion of   such  property  by electronic transmission or by any other means;

            (e)  "freezing" means temporarily prohibiting the transfer, conversion, disposition or movement of property by  an  order issued under section 68F;

            (f)   "identifying" includes establishment of proof that the property was derived from, or used in, the illicit traffic;

            (g)  "illegally acquired property", in relation to any person to whom this Chapter applies, means –

                        (i) any property acquired by such person, whether before  or after the commencement of this Chapter,  wholly  or partly out of or by means of any income, earnings or assets derived or obtained from or attributable to illicit traffic; or

                        (ii) any property acquired by such person, whether before or after the commencement of this Chapter, for a consideration, or by any means wholly  or  partly traceable to any property referred to in sub-clause (i) or the income or earning from such property, and includes –

                             (A) any property held by such person which would have been, in relation to any previous  holder  thereof, illegally  acquired property under this clause if such previous holder had not ceased to hold it, unless such person or any other person who  held  the property at any time after  such previous holder or, where  there are two or more such previous holders, the last of such  previous holders is or  was  a  transferee  in  good  faith  for  adequate consideration;

                            (B) any property acquired by such person, whether before or after the commencement of this Chapter, for a consideration, or by any means, wholly or partly traceable to any property falling under item (A), or the income or earnings therefrom;

            (h) "property" means property and assets of every description, whether   corporeal or incorporeal,  movable  or  immovable, tangible or intangible  and deeds and instruments evidencing title to, or interest in, such property or assets, derived from, or used in, the illicit traffic;

            (i)  "relative" means –

                        (1)  spouse of the person;

                        (2)  brother or sister of the person;

                        (3)  brother or sister of the spouse of the person;

                        (4)  any lineal ascendant or descendant of the person;

                        (5)  any lineal ascendant or descendant of the spouse of the person;

                        (6)  spouse of a person referred to in sub-clause  (2),  sub-clause (3), sub-clause (4) or sub-clause (5);

                        (7)  any lineal descendant of a person referred  to  in  sub-clause (2) or sub-clause (3);

            (j)  "tracing" means determining the nature, source,  disposition, movement, title or ownership of property;

            (k) "trust" includes any other legal obligation.

 68C. Prohibition of holding illegally acquired property.

            (1)  As from the commencement of this Chapter, it shall not be lawful for any person to whom this Chapter applies to hold any illegally acquired property either by himself or through any other person on his behalf.

            (2)  Where any person holds any illegally acquired property in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), such property shall be liable to be forfeited to the Central Government in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter:

         Provided that no property shall be forfeited under this Chapter if such property was acquired by a person to whom this Act applies before a period of six years from the date on which he was charged for an offence relating to illicit traffic. 

68D. Competent authority.

            (1) The Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, authorise any Collector of Customs or Collector of Central Excise or Commissioner of Income-tax or any other officer of the Central Government of equivalent rank to perform the functions of the competent authority under this Chapter.

            (2) The competent authorities shall perform their functions in respect of such persons or classes of persons as the Central Government may, by order, direct.

68E. Identifying illegally acquired property.

            (1) Every officer empowered under section 53 and every officer-in-charge of a police station, shall, on receipt of information that any person to whom this this Chapter applies has been charged with any offence punishable under this Act, whether committed in India or outside, proceed to take all steps necessary for tracing and identifying any property illegally acquired by such person.

            (2) The steps referred to in sub-section (1) may include any inquiry, investigation or survey in respect of any  person,  place, property, assets, documents, books of account  in any bank or public financial institution or any other relevant matters.

            (3) Any inquiry, investigation or survey referred to in sub-section (2) shall be carried out by an officer mentioned in sub-section (1) in accordance with such directions or guidelines as the competent authority may make or issue in this behalf. 
 
68F.  Seizure or freezing of illegally acquired property.

            (1)  Where any officer conducting an inquiry or investigation under section 68E has reason to believe that any property in relation to which such inquiry or investigation is being conducted is an illegally acquired property and such property is likely to be concealed, transferred or dealt with in any manner which will result in frustrating any proceeding relating to forfeiture of such property under this Chapter, he may make an order for seizing such property and where it is not practicable to seize such property, he may make an order that such property shall not be transferred or otherwise dealt with, except with the prior permission of the officer making such order, or  of the competent authority and a copy of such order shall be served on the person concerned:

           Provided that the competent authority shall be duly informed of any order made under this sub-section and a copy of such an order shall be sent to the competent authority within forty-eight hours of its being made.

            (2)  Any order made under sub-section (1) shall have no effect unless the said order is confirmed by an order of the competent authority within a period of thirty days of its being made.

         Explanation --For the purposes of this section, "transfer of property" means any disposition, conveyance, assignment, settlement, delivery, payment or other alienation of property and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes –

                        (a)  the creation of a trust in property;

                        (b)  the grant or creation of any  lease, mortgage, charge, easement, licence, power, partnership or interest in property;

                        (c)  the exercise of a power of appointment of property vested in any person, not the owner of the property, to determine its disposition in favour of any  person other than  the donee of the power; and

                        (d)  any transaction entered into by any person with intent thereby to diminish directly or indirectly the value of  his own property and to increase the value of the property of any other person. 
 
68G.  Management of properties seizes or forfeited under this Chapter.

            (1)   The Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette,  appoint as many of its officers (not below the rank of a Joint secretary  to the Government) as it thinks fit, to perform the functions of an Administrator.

            (2)   The Administrator appointed under sub-section (1) shall receive and manage the property in relation to which an order  has been made under sub-section (1) of section 68F or under section  68I in such manner and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed.

            (3)   The Administrator shall also take such measures, as the Central Government may direct, to dispose of the property which is forfeited to the Central Government.

 68H.   Notice of forfeiture of property.

            (1)   If, having regard to the value of the properties held by any person to whom this Chapter applies, either by himself or through any other person on his behalf, his known sources of income, earnings or assets, and any other information or material available to it as a result of a report from any officer making an investigation under section 68E or otherwise, the competent authority has reason to believe (the reasons for such belief to be recorded in writing) that all or any of such properties are illegally acquired properties, it may serve a notice upon such  person (hereinafter referred to as the  person  affected) calling  upon  him within a period of thirty days specified in the  notice to indicate the sources of his income, earnings or assets, out of  which or by means of which he has acquired such property, the evidence on which he relies and other relevant information and particulars, and to show cause why all or any of such properties, as the case  may be, should not be declared to be illegally acquired properties  and  forfeited to the Central Government under this Chapter.

            (2)   Where a notice under sub-section (1) to any person specifies any property as being held on behalf of such person by any other person, a copy of the noticed shall also be served upon such other person.

68I.  Forfeiture of property in certain cases.

            (1)  The competent authority may, after considering the  explanation, if any, to the show cause notice issued under section 68H,  and  the  materials  available before it and after giving to the  person affected (and in a case where the person affected holds any property specified  in  the notice through any other person, to such other person also)  a  reasonable opportunity of being heard, by order, record a finding whether all or any of the properties in question are illegally acquired properties:

        Provided that if the person affected (and in a case where the person affected holds any property specified in the notice through any other person such other person also) does not appear before the competent authority or represent his case before it within a period of thirty days specified in the show cause notice, the competent authority may proceed to record a finding under this sub-section exporter on the basis of evidence available before it.

            (2)  Where the competent authority is satisfied that some of the properties referred to in the show cause notice are illegally acquired properties but is not able to identify specifically such properties, then, it shall be lawful for the competent authority to specify the properties which, to the best of its judgment, are illegally acquired properties and record a finding accordingly under sub-section (1).

            (3)  Where the competent authority records a finding under this section to the effect that any property is illegally acquired property, it shall declare that such property shall, subject to the provisions of this Chapter, stand forfeited to the Central Government free from all encumbrances.

            (4)  Where any shares in a company stand forfeited to the Central Government under this Chapter, then, the company shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956)  or  the articles of association of the  company, forthwith  register  the Central Government as the transferee of such shares. 

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