(1) Any officer, not below the rank of a State Tax Officer shall have the power to intercept and search the vehicle or vessel or any conveyance transporting notified goods at any place within the State for the purpose of enabling such officer to verify whether any notified goods are being smuggled into or out of the state.

(2) If on verification such officer has reason to suspect that the notified goods are being smuggled into or out of the State, he may, without any unreasonable delay, produce the goods and the vehicle before such officer authorised by the Government, by notification in the Gazette, not below the rank of an Deputy Commissioner of State Tax.

(3) Where the authorised officer is satisfied that the driver or other person in charge of the vehicle or vessel or other conveyance is smuggling notified goods, the officer shall have the power to seize and detain the goods along with the vehicle or vessel:

Provided that before taking action to seize and detain the goods and the vehicle or vessel under this section, the officer shall give the person in charge of the goods and the owner, if ascertainable, and to the owner of the vehicle or the person in charge of the vehicle a notice in writing informing him the reason for the seizure and detention of the goods and vehicle or vessel and an opportunity of being heard:

Provided further that the authorised officer may release the goods and the vehicle or vessel seized and detained if the owner or the person in charge of the notified goods or the owner or person in charge of the vehicle or vessel files an option to pay in lieu of seizure and detention, a redemption fee equal to thrice the amount of tax due at the rate applicable to the goods liable to seizure and detention and twice the tax due or an amount of Rs.50,000 whichever is higher for the release of the vehicle or vessel in lieu of detention:

Provided further that if the owner of the vehicle produces the documents specified in sub-section (3) of section 46 and the owner of the goods proves the bonafides of the transport of goods within seven days of the seizure and detention the officer shall release the goods and the vehicle.

(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing provisions, if the owner or person in charge of the notified goods or the owner or person in charge of the vehicle fails to prove the genuineness of the transport of the notified goods or to remit the redemption fee as specified in second proviso to sub section(3), within thirty days from the seizure and detention of goods and the authorized officer has reason to believe that the owner or the person in charge of the vehicle or the driver has transported the notified goods to evade payment of tax with the knowledge or connivance of the owner of the goods, the officer may confiscate the vehicle or vessel along with the goods:

Provided that the authorized officer shall serve notice to the owner of the vehicle or the person in charge of the vehicle or the owner of the notified goods, if ascertainable, intimating the reason for the confiscation of the vehicle or vessel affording him and an opportunity of being heard. The officer shall also afford an opportunity to any of such persons to pay a penalty equal to thrice the amount of tax attempted to be evaded in lieu of confiscation of the notified goods and an amount equal to thrice the amount of such tax or rupees one lakh whichever is higher in lieu of confiscation of the vehicle or vessel.

(5) No order confiscating any vehicle or vessel shall be made under sub section (4), if the owner or the person in charge of the vehicle or vessel proves to the satisfaction of the authorized officer that it was used for carrying the notified goods without the knowledge or connivance of the owner himself, his agent, if any, or the person in charge of such vehicle or vessel and that each of them have taken all reasonable and necessary precautions against such use:

Provided that the authorised officer shall serve notice to the owner of the vehicle or the person in charge of the vehicle or the owner of the notified goods, if ascertainable, intimating the reason for the confiscation of the vehicle or vessel and an opportunity of being heard. The officer shall also afford an opportunity to pay a penalty equal to thrice the amount of tax attempted to be evaded by the owner of the goods and rupees one lakh by the owner or person in charge of the vehicle or vessel in lieu of confiscation of vehicle, if the owner of the notified goods is not ascertainable or not willing to remit the penalty specified, the owner of the vehicle or the person in charge of the vehicle or vessel shall pay three times of the tax sought to be evaded and an amount of rupees one lakh in lieu of confiscation of the goods and vehicle.

(6) Any person aggrieved by an order under sub-section (5) may, within thirty days from the date of communication to him of such order, file an application for revision in such manner and in such form as may be prescribed and accompanied by a fee of rupees five hundred before the Joint Commissioner of State Tax and the Joint Commissioner of State Tax may pass such orders thereon as he thinks fit:

Provided that the Joint Commissioner of State Tax may admit an application for revision preferred after the expiry of the said period if he is satisfied that the applicant had sufficient cause for not filing the revision petition within the said period.

(7) Any person aggrieved by an order under sub-section (6) may, within thirty days from the date of communication to him of such order, file a revision in such manner and in such form as may be prescribed and accompanied by a fee of rupees five hundred before the Commissioner of State Tax and the decision of the Commissioner of State Tax shall be final:

Provided that the Commissioner of State Tax may admit an application for revision filed after the expiry of the said period if it is satisfied that the applicant had sufficient cause for not filing the application within the said period.

(8) Where an order of confiscation under this section has become final in respect of any goods/vessel such goods vehicle or vessels as the case may be shall vest in the Government free from all encumbrances.

(8A) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the goods so confiscated under this section can be disposed of by public auction or by public sale, if the Commissioner of State Tax feels that compelling circumstances exist to do so.

(9) The award of confiscation under this section shall not prevent the infliction of any punishment to which the person affected thereby is liable under the Act.