B. N. Srikrishna, C. J.

1. Appeals admitted. Notices made returnable forthwith. Respondents in all three appeals waive service through learned counsel. By consent, appeals called out for hearing and heard.

2. In all these three appeals the vehicles of the appellants were seized on the allegation that they were illegally transporting sand from the river banks. In W. A. No. 1286 and 1287 of 2002 by Ext. P2 order issued by the Sub Collector, Adoor, who is also the Revenue Divisional Officer, the appellants were informed that their lorries had been seized for unauthorised transporting of river sand and a sum of Rs. 25,000/- was imposed as fine for transporting river sand without any valid pass. The Tahsildar, Kozhencherry was directed to collect the sum of Rs. 25,000/- as fine and release the lorries after unloading the river sand from where it was collected. In W. A. No. 1330 of 2002, by Ext. P4 order made by Tahsildar, Mallappally, purportedly under the Mines and Minerals (Development Regulation) Act, 1957 read with R.60A of the Kerala Minor Minerals Concession Act, 1967, a sum of Rs. 25,000/- was levied as maximum penalty with a direction for re-depositing the sand from the lorry at Manimala river in the presence of the Village Officer, Mallappally. In these three cases the vehicles concerned had been seized and is in custody of the police authorities.

3. All three appellants challenged the orders passed against them by Original Petitions before the learned Single Judge. In each of the cases, the learned Single Judge made an interim order directing the authorities to release the vehicles concerned on receiving the fine amount. Being aggrieved thereby, the three appellants are before this Court.

4. The Kerala Minor Minerals Concession Rules, 1967 (hereinafter referred to as 'K.M.M.C. Rules') R.58 (1) provides that contravention of any provision of the rules shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with a fine which may extend to twenty five thousand rupees or with both, R.59 provides that no court shall take cognizance of any offence punishable under these rules, except upon complaint in writing made by a person authorised in this behalf by the State Government or the competent authority. R.60A provides for compounding of offences before or after the initiation of the prosecution. The provisions of S.21(1), 22 and 23A of the Mines & Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act are similarly worded as the present rules to which we have referred. A reading of the relevant provisions of the aforesaid Act and the K.M.M.C. Rules suggests that neither the Revenue nor the Police authorities have the power to impose any fine on a person who contravenes the provisions of the rules. Any person who extracts and transports any minor mineral as defined under S.3 of the Act, 1957 without appropriate permission from the concerned authority is deemed to commit an offence. We do not see any provision in the Act or Rules empowering anyone other than a court of law to take cognizance of an offence punishable under the Act and the Rules upon a complaint by the appropriate person. We are, therefore, of the view that the order at Ext. P4 made by the first respondent in W. A. No. 1330 of 2002 is without jurisdiction. R.60A of the K.M.M.C. Rules merely enables the concerned revenue officer to compound an offence before prosecution is instituted for infractions of the rules. Compounding necessarily means that the person desirous to compound it admits his liability. In the present case, there is no material to suggest that the appellant admits his liability or that there was any request made by the appellant for compounding the offence. Even before us, the learned counsel appearing for the appellant states that he is willing to take his chance of prosecution before the court of law.

5. Turning to the provisions of the Kerala Protection of River Banks and Regulation of Removal of Sand Act, 2001 (Act 18 of 2001), we n