Point of Law:
word “smuggling” has been defined in clause (e) of Section 2 of COFEPOSA Act, wherein it is provided that smuggling has the same meaning as in clause 39 of Section 2 of Customs Act, 1962 or its grammatical variation and cognate expression shall be construed accordingly. Thus, which activity should be considered as smuggling for the purpose of deciding the activity which may fall in the definition of smuggling, one has to refer to clause 39 of Section 2 of the Customs Act, 1962.

JUDGMENT :

A.P. THAKER, J.

1. All the three petitions have been filed under Articles 14, 21, 22 and 226 of the Constitution of India against the Order of detention passed by the Authorities against the petitioner in respective petitions.

2. The Petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 22512 of 2019 namely Rutugna Arvindkumar Trivedi has challenged the order of detention dated 2.8.2019 bearing F. No. PD-12002/12/2019-COFEPOSA on the various grounds averred in the petition.

2.1 Whereas the Petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 23147 of 2019 namely Lokesh Subhash Sharma has challenged the Order of detention dated 02.08.2019 bearing F. No. PD-12002/16/2019-COFEPOSA on various grounds.

2.2 The Petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 1713 of 2020 namely Nita Chunilal Parmar has challenged the Order of detention dated 2.8.2019 bearing F. No. PD-12002/ 14/2019-COFEPOSA on the grounds mentioned in the Petition.

2.3 All the petitioners have prayed to quash and set-aside the impugned order of detention passed against them by detaining authorities and set them free.

3. All the three petitions have been arisen from the same incident and on the same set of facts and materials and, therefore, all the three petitions are being disposed of by this common judgment. This Court has considered voluminous documents placed on the record of this case, consisting of more than 1500 pages, which includes written submissions of both the sides and the decisions cited at the bar.

3.1 In view of the facts that the detention orders passed against the respective petitioners of the three petitions have been arisen from the same set of facts and circumstances and they are interwoven, the facts of Special Civil Application No. 22512 of 2019 is taken as a lead matter.

4. The brief facts of the Petition is that on 4.6.2019, the Officers of Customs AIU Unit, Sardar Vallabhbhai International Airport came across incident of smuggling of gold by some persons in connivance with the Airport Staff and when the scope of investigation was broadened, the authorities came to know that one Shri Rutugna Arvindkumar Trivedi (Petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 12512 of 2019) along with others, was responsible for organising the entire modus operandi of smuggling of gold. It is alleged that on 4.6.2019, the Officer of the Deputy Commissioner of Customs, Ahmedabad found one Mr. Jignesh Savaliya, working as Assistant Duty Officer of Globe Ground India Private Limited behaving in a suspicious manner in the Aerobridge of Bay No. 32 and was found to be in possession of one yellow metal. It is further alleged that the Officers of Deputy Commissioner of Customs, Ahmedabad conducted personal search of Mr. Savaliya and found him to be carrying nine brown packets (in his blazer and waistcoat worn by him and were not concealed) in the presence of Panchas under Panchnama dated 4.6.2019. Upon opening of the packet, it was found that the same was containing 47 yellow metal bars i.e. gold bars (22 pieces each of 1 Kg and 25 pieces each of 100 grams), which was tested by a Government approved Valuer.

4.1 It is alleged that the said Mr. Jignesh Savaliya in his statement stated that the said gold bars were given to him by a passenger named Mr. Lokesh Sharma (Petitioner of SCA No. 23147 of 2019) at Aerobridge of Bay No. 32 and that he was supposed to hand over the said gold bars to Mr. Rutugna Arvindkumar Trivedi, petitioner herein, outside the Airport terminal. Mr. Savaliya has also allegedly informed that Mr. Lokesh Sharma had exited the Airport terminal and upon the instruction of the Officers of the Deputy Comissioner of Customs, Ahmedabad, Mr. Savaliya called Mr. Sharma at Gate No. 5 where Mr. Lokesh Sharma was apprehended.

4.2 It is alleged that upon physical search of Mr. Sharma and examination of his baggage, nothing incriminating was found but during the checking of black co