Assam Excise Act, 2000
No: 14 Dated: Oct, 11 2000
Amendment:- Assam Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018
THE ASSAM EXCISE ACT, 2000
ASSAM ACT NO.XIV OF 2000
An Act to consolidate and amend the Excise law in force in Assam.
Whereas it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law in force in Assam, relating to import, export, possession of intoxicating liquor and of intoxicating drugs.
It is hereby enacted in the Fifty-first Year of the Republic of India as follows:-
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
1. Short title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the Assam Excise Act, 2000.
(2) It extends to the whole of Assam.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification appoint in this behalf.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,-
(a) "beer" includes ale, stout, port, and all other fermented liquor usually made from malt;
(b) "to bottle" means to transfer liquor from a cask or other vessels to a bottle or other receptacle, whether any process of rectification be employed or not and includes re- bottling;
(c) "club" means a society of persons associated together for social intercourse, for the promotion of politics, sports, arts, science, literature or for any purpose except the acquisition of gain, or whether the same be registered under the Indian Companies, Act, 1956 (Central Act 1 of 1956) the Assam Co-operative Societies Act, 1949 (Assam Act 1 of 1950) the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (Central Act 2 of 1860) or other wise incorporated or not;
(d) "Collector" includes the District Collector, and in any provision of this Act includes also any officer whom the State Government may, by notification, declare or appoint to be a Collector for the purposes of that provision;
(e) "denaturant" means any substance prescribed by rule made in this behalf under clause (m) of Section 84 for admixture with spirit in order to render the mixture unfit for human consumption, whether as a beverage, or internally as a medicine or any other way whatsoever;
(f) "to denature" means to mix spirit with one or more denaturants in such manner as may be prescribed by rules made in this behalf under clause (m) of Section 84; and denatured spirit means spirit so mixed;
(g) "District Collector" means the Chief Officer-in-charge of the revenue administration of a district;
(h) "excisable articles" means-
(a) any alcoholic liquor for human consumption; or
(b) any intoxicating drug;
(i) "excise duty" and "countervailing duty" mean any such excise duty or countervailing duty, as the case may be, as is mentioned in entry 51 of list II in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution;
(j) "excise Commissioner" means the officer appointed by the State Government, under Section 6, sub-section (2), clause (a);
(k) "excise officer" means a Collector or any officer or other person appointed or invested with powers under Section 6;
(l) "excise revenue" means revenue derived or derivable from any duty, fee, tax, penalty, payment (other than a fine imposed by a Court of law) or confiscation imposed or ordered under the provisions of this Act, or of any other law for the time being in force relating to liquor or intoxicating drugs.
(m) "export" means to take out of the territory to which this Act applies, otherwise, than across a custom frontier as defined by the Central Government;
(n) "Import" (except in the phrase import into India) means to bring into the territories to which this Act applies otherwise than across custom frontier as defined by the Central Government;
(o) "intoxicating" means any liquor or intoxicating drug;
(p) "intoxicating drug" means-
(i) the leaves, small stalks or flowering or fruiting tops of the Indian hemp plant (Cannabis Saliva L) including all forms known as bhang; sidhi or ganja;
(ii) charas, that is, the resin obtained from the Indian hemp plant which has not been submitted to any manipulations other than those necessary for paching and transport;
(iii) any mixture with or without natural materials, or any of the above forms of intoxicating drugs, or any drink prepared therefrom, and
(iv) any other intoxicating or narcotic substance which the State Government may, by notification, declare to be an intoxicating drug, such substance not being opium, coca leaf, or manufactured drug, as defined in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (Central Act 61 of 1985);
(q) "liquor" means intoxicating liquor and includes all liquid consisting of or containing alcohol; also tari and pachwai in any form ; and any substance which the State Government may, by notification, declare to be liquor for the purposes of this Act;
(r) "manufacture" includes any process whether natural or artificial by which any intoxicant is produced or prepared, also redistillation and every process for the rectification, flavouring, blending or colouring of liquor;
(s) "State Government" means the Government of Assam;
(t) "pachwai" means any fermented rice, millet, or other grain, whether mixed with any liquid or not and any liquid obtained therefrom, whether, diluted, or undiluted but does not include beer;
(u) "place" includes a house, building, shop, tent, vessel and raft and vehicle;
(v) expressions referring to sale include any transfer otherwise than by way of gift;
(w) "spirit" means any liquor containing alcohol, obtained by distillation whether it is denatured or not;
(x) "tari" means, juice, whether fermented or unfermented, drawn from any kind of palm tree;
(y) "transport" means to move from one place to another within the territories to which this Act applies.
[(z) "Public Place" means any place intended for use by or accessible to the public and includes any conveyance running or parked on public roads or parking area;]
3. Power to define country liquor and foreign liquor respectively. - The State Government may, by notification, declare what for the purposes of this Act, shall be deemed to be Country Liquor and Foreign liquor respectively.
4. Whole-sale or retail sale. - The State Government may, by notification declare with respect either to the whole of the territories to which this Act applies or to any local area comprised therein and as regards purchasers generally or any specified class of purchasers generally or any specified occasion, what quantity of any intoxicant shall for the purpose of this Act, be the limit of sale by retail and of sale by wholesale, respectively.
5. Saving of certain enactments. - Nothing contained in this Act shall affect the provisions of the Cantonment Act, 1924, the Sea Customs Act, 1878 (Central Act 8 of 1878), or the Indian Tariff Act, 1894 (Central Act 8 of 1894) or any rule or order made under the said Acts.
CHAPTER II
Establishment and Control
6. Appointment of officers and conferment, withdrawal and delegation of power. - (1) Within a district, the administration of the Excise Department and the Collector of Excise Revenue shall be under the charge of the District Collector.
(2) The State Government may, by notification applicable to the whole of the territories to which this Act applies, or to any District or local area comprised therein-
(a) appoint an Officer who shall subject to the control of the State Government, have the control of the administration of the Excise Department and of the collection of excise revenue;
(b) appoint any person other than the District Collector who shall, subject to the control of the District Collector, exercise all or any of the powers or perform all or any of the duties of a Collector under this Act, or any other law for the time being in force relating to the excise revenue;
(c) appoint officers of the excise department of such classes and of such designations, powers and duties under this Act, as the State Government may think fit;
(d) withdraw from any officer or person all or any of his powers or duties under this Act;
(e) authorise-
(i) the State Government to delegate to the Excise Commissioner and also in such cases and such matters as the State Government may specify, to the Commissioner of a Division;
(ii) the Excise Commissioner, and in such cases and in such matters as the State Government may specify, a Commissioner of Division, subject to the control of the State Government to delegate to Collectors; and
(iii) Collector; subject to the control of the Excise Commissioner and the State Government, to delegate to subordinate officers, subject to such conditions and restrictions as may be prescribed by any rules made under Section 84, sub-section (2), clause (a) any powers conferred upon, or delegated to, or exercised in respect of the excise revenue by the State Government, the Excise Commissioner, Commissioners of Divisions and Collectors, respectively, by or under the provisions of this Act or of any other law for the time being in force relating to excise.
7. Appeal. - (1) Orders passed under this Act or the rules framed thereunder by the Excise Commissioner, a District Collector, a Collector other than a District Collector or an authority mentioned in Sections 14 and 17 of this Act, shall be appealable before Assam Board of Revenue.
(2) In hearing appeals, the Assam Board of Revenue may call for the proceedings held by any of officers or authorities mentioned in sub-section (1) and pass such order or orders thereon as it may think fit.