( 1 ) THE writ petitioner is a public limited company owned and controlled by the State Government of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the largest and biggest manufacturers of sugar in this State. For the above purpose, it has set up various units of vacuum pan process factories in various parts of the State. One such unit is a Zaheerabad with which this writ petition is concerned. Production of sugar is leviable to central excise duty. In order to secure payment of excise duty on the manufactured sugar, the relevant Central Excise Rules of 1944 made under the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 insist upon observance of certain prescribed procedures for the removal of the manufactured sugar from and out of the godowns of the company which are required statutorily to be kept.

( 2 ) ON 24. 4. 1978, the Superintendent of the Central Excise (Audit) along with his staff during their routine visit of the above unit found two lorries, viz. , APG 953 and AAT 3790 loaded with 176 sugar bags intended to be transported to Co-operative Central Trading Society, Hyderabad and to Hyderabad Agricultural Co-operative Association Limited, Hyderabad. This transportation was found not to have been covered by any valid transport documents which are required under the Central Excise Rules of 1944. We repeat that the relevant Central Excise Rules of 1944 made under the Central Excises and Salt Act of 1944 insist upon the observance of statutorily prescribed procedure for the removal of the manufactured sugar from and out of the godowns of the company which are required to be kept by the law. The purpose of these Rules would clearly be defeated if the observance (sic) of them is easily condoned by courts or even by the department. Rule 173q, therefore, makes the non-observance of those Rules punishable with confiscation, fine and penalty.

( 3 ) UNDER rule 52-A, no excisable goods shall be delivered from a factory except under the authority of a gate pass made in the proper form, signed by the owner of the factory and countersigned by the proper officer. Rule 52 of the Rules says that, when the manufacturer desires to remove goods on payment of duty, he shall make an application in triplicate to the proper officer in the proper form, and shall deliver it to the officer at least twelve hours in advance. The officer shall thereupon assess the amount of duty due on the goods and on production of evidence that this amount has been paid into the Treasury, to the Collector or in the Reserve Bank of India, shall allow the goods to be cleared. Under rule 226, a producer of sugar, who is required to maintain an entry book, stock account, or warehouse register, is expressly required to keep correctly such books, accounts, or registers in the manner required, and shall not cancel, obliterate, or alter any entry therein except for correction of any errors with the sanction and in the presence of the proper officer. That rule says that any person who fails to enter the required particulars within the time prescribed under the relevant rule, shall be liable to penalty which may extent to Rs. 2000, the goods of which due entry has not been made in such books, accounts or registers are also liable to confiscation. Under rule 173g of the above Rules, a person liable to pay excise duty, called an assessee, is required to keep an account current with the Collector separately for each excisable goods, and, an account in Form R. G. 23. Account in R. G. 23 is also known as "personal Ledger Account". Under rule 173f, an assessee shall himself determine his liability for the duty due on the excisable goods intended to be removed and shall not, except as otherwise expressly provided in the Rules, remove such goods unless he has paid duty so determined. In the case of manufacturers of excisable goods, who adopt the method of self-removal, the above rule would be satisfied by the manufacturer making appropriate entries in account books showing the quantity of excisable