Compliance with the provisions of the Cement (Quality Control) Order, 1962, and the ISI Act, 1952, is mandatory, and non-compliance can lead to criminal liability.

1. 1. These six bail petitions (ut supra) seeking relief for grant of anticipatory bail have been moved by different sets of petitioners who are accused of the alleged s punishable tinder Section 3/7 of the Essential Commodities Act. 1955 and for alleged violation of the provisions, of the Cement (Quality Control) Order, 1962, in four different sets of FIRs registered at Police Station Behror (Dist. Alwar).

2. Since common question of law is involved, therefore with the consent of the parties and for their convenience, these bail petitions have been heard together and are being disposed by this common judgment.

3. Undisputedly, the petitioners are dealing in manufacturing cement; the industrial unit premises of the petitioners were inspected by the Enforcement Officer and the cement manufactured by the petitioners was confiscated by the Enforcement Officer. It has been alleged that after inspection it was found that the cement did not have I S I. certification marks in as much as the petitioners were not having licence as was required under the Indian Standards Institution (Certification Marks) Act, 1952, (for short, ISI Act) contravention of which as well as the Cement (Quality Control) Order, 1962 (for brevity, 'Control Order') issued under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 is an punishable under that Act, 1955. On the reports lodged by the Enforcement Officer, Behror, criminal cases for the offences under Section 3/7 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 have been registered at Police Station Behror against the petitioners in these bail petitions.

4. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioners.

5. It has been contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that in the report lodged by the Enforcement Officer it has not at all been alleged that the cement manufactured in the industrial unit of the petitioners was not of prescribed standard. Learned counsel added that in the instant case, the prosecution should have alleged that the cement in question was not only (not) having I.S.I. certification marks but also was not of prescribed standard. According to the petitioners one of the ingredients of the alleged against them is missing.

6. Next limb of the arguments urged by the learned counsel for the petitioners is that the vires of Control Order are under challenge in a writ petition pending before this Court at Jodhpur. Moreover, according to them, the cement in question is not alleged to have been kept, stored or manufactured for the purposes of sale.

7. Then, learned counsel for the petitioners contended that though at the relevant time, the petitioners were not having licence under the I.S.I. Act, and I.S.I. certification marks under the Control Order, but the same were obtained subsequently in as much as for I.S.I. certification marks the petitioners have been exempted by the competent authority. In this view of the matter. according to the learned counsel for the petitioners, no is committed by the petitioners. Some documents have been filed on behalf of the petitioners in order to show that application for getting licence under the I.S.I. Act was filed and was pending at the crucial time. Documents have also been filed on the point of I.S.T. certification marks.

8. Lastly, learned counsel for the petitioners contended that no investigation is to be made from the petitioners and their arrest is not warranted for investigation purposes and further more, the petitioners had no mensrea of whatsoever kind.

9. Learned Public Prosecutors on the other hand vociforcely opposed the bail petitions.

10. Before considering the submissions made at the bar, I would like to quote Statement of Objects & Reasons from the I.S.I. Act -

"As a pre-requisite to the establishment of a healthy trade, both internal and external, standardisation of products in respect of quality which would compare very favourably with the established makes of foreign products, is essential and needs no emphasis. With this object in view the Gove