71. Penalty for transporting goods in contravention of section 68 or section 73
(1) If any goods are seized under section 70, the Commissioner or the Additional Commissioner may by an order in writing, impose upon the person from, whom such goods are seized or the owner of such goods, where particulars of the owner of such goods are available, or where there is no claimant for such goods at the time of such seizure, any person who subsequently establishes his claims of ownership or possession of such goods, after giving such person or owner, as the case may be, a reasonable opportunity of being heard, a penalty of a sum not exceeding fifty per centum of the value of such goods as may be determined by him in accordance with the rules made under this Act.
PROVIDED that the sum of penalty that may be imposed under this sub-section shall not exceed-
(a) thirty per centum of the value of goods if the rate of tax leviable under sub-section (1) of section 17 or sub-section (1) of section 18, sub-section (1) of section 20, in respect of such goods does not exceed ten per centum;
(b) fifty per centum of the value of goods if the rate of tax leviable under sub-section (1) of section 17, or sub-section (1) of section 18, in respect of such goods exceeds ten per centum
(2) A penalty imposed under sub-section (1) shall be paid by the person or the owner of goods, as the case may be, into a Government Treasury or the Reserve Bank of India by such date as may be specified by the Commissioner or the Additional Commissioner in a notice to be issued for this purpose, and the date so specified shall not be earlier than fifteen days from the date of the notice:
PROVIDED
(3) The goods seized under section 70 shall be released in the prescribed manner on payment of the penalty imposed under sub-section (1).
(4) If the penalty is not paid by the date specified in the notice issued, under sub-section (2), the Commissioner and the Additional Commissioner may, in such manner and subject to such restrictions and conditions as may be prescribed, sell the goods so seized under Section 70 in open auction and remit the sale proceeds thereof to a Government Treasury.
(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3),-
(a) the person to whom the Commissioner has, under sub-section (4) of section 3, delegated his power for revision under section 81, pending disposal of an application for revision against an order for imposition of penalty referred to in sub-section (1), or
(b) the Commissioner, where there is no application for revision under section 81,
may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, direct release of the goods seized under section 70 on such terms and conditions as he may deem fit.
(6) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (4), the Commissioner may, subject to such rules as may be made under this Act, where the goods seized under section 70 are -
(a) of perishable nature, or
(b) required to be used by a specified date,
sell such goods in open auction after the expiry of such period as he may consider fit and proper, if he is of opinion that such goods may become unusable or unsaleable on detention, or destroy such goods if the said goods become unusable before the sale in open auction actually takes place.
(7) The proceeds of sale of the goods referred to in sub-section (4) or sub-section (6) shall be applied in the prescribed manner for payment in the following order of priority :-
(a) firstly, for incidental charges, if any, relating to auction sale of such goods;
(b) secondly, for expenses, if any, for storage of such goods;
(c) thirdly, for penalty imposed under sub-section (1); and
the balance of the proceeds of sale, if any, shall be paid to the owner of the goods or, if his particulars are not available, to the person from whom such goods were seized under section 70, upon application within one year from the date of sale or within such further period as may be allowed by the Commissioner for cause shown to his satisfaction.
(8) Any amount of penalty imposed under sub-section (1), which remains unpaid after the date specified in the notice issued under sub-section (2) or which cannot be recovered in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (4), sub-section (6) or sub-section (7), shall be recoverable in accordance with the provisions of section 52.