The production, manufacture, storage, possession, collection, purchase, sale and transport of liquor other than arrack and all other matters connected therewith shall be regulated in accordance with the provisions of the 42Telangana Excise Act, 1968 (Act 17 of 1968) or the 43Telangana (Regulation of Trade in *[Indian Made Foreign Liquor], Foreign Liquor) Act, 1993, (Act 15 of 1993) as the case may be and the rules and notifications and orders issued thereunder.]
Chapter - V
DETECTION, INVESTIGATION AND TRIAL OF OFFENCES
44[17. Issue of search Warrants. (1) If any Collector, Prohibition Officer or Magistrate upon information obtained after such inquiry as he thinks necessary, has reason to believe that an offence under section 7, section 7A or section 8 has been committed, he may issue a warrant for a search for any liquor, materials, still, utensil, implement or apparatus in respect of which the alleged offence has been committed. Any person who has been entrusted with the execution of such a warrant may detain and search, and if he thinks proper, arrest any person found in the place searched, if he has reason to believe such person to be guilty of any offence under this Act and also seize and detain any excisable or other articles which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act.]
18. Powers of entry without search warrant. Whenever, a Collector, any Prohibition Officer or any Police Officer, 45[not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector], any officer in charge of a Police Station, has reason to believe that an offence under 45[section 7, section 7A or section 8] has been committed and that the delay occasioned by obtaining search warrant under section 17 will prevent the execution there of, he may, after recording the reasons and the grounds of his belief, at any time by day or night enter and search any place and may seize anything found therein which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act; and may detain and search and, if he thinks proper, arrest any person found in such place whom he has reason to believe to be guilty of any offence under this Act and also seize and detain any excisable or other article which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act.
46[XXX]
19. Power of entry and inspection. The Collector, any Prohibition Officer or any Police Officer, 47[not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector] may enter and inspect at any time by day or by night, any place in which it is reasonably suspected,
(a) that any liquor is kept for sale or stored 48[otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of the 49Telangana Excise Act, 1968 (Act 17 of 1968.), and the rules made thereunder]; or
(b) that an offence under 47[section 7, section 7A or section 8] is being committed;
and may examine, test, measure or weigh any material, still, utensil, implement, apparatus or liquor found in such place.
20. Power to use force in case of resistance to entry. If any officer empowered to make an entry under sections 17, 18 and 19 cannot otherwise make such entry, it shall be lawful for him to break open any outer or inner door or window and to remove any other obstacles to his entry into any such place.
21. Arrest of offenders and seizure of contraband liquor and articles without warrant. Any Prohibition Officer or any Police Officer, 50[not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector],
(a) may arrest without warrant any person found committing an offence punishable under 50[section 7, section 7A, section 8 or section 9];
(b) may seize and detain any liquor or other article which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act; and
(c) may search any person, vessel, vehicle, animal, package, receptacle or covering, upon whom or in which, he may have reasonable cause to suspect any such liquor or other article or to be concealed.
22. Arrest of persons refusing to give name or giving false name. Any person, who may be accused or reasonably suspected of committing an offence under this Act, and who on demand made by any Prohibition Officer or any Police Officer 51[not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector] refuses to give his name and residence or who gives a name or residence which such officer has reason to believe to be false, may be arrested by such Officer in order that his name and residence may be ascertained.
23. Arrest, search etc., how to be made. Any person arrested under this Act, shall be informed, as soon as may be of the grounds for such arrest and save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, relating to arrests, detention in custody, searches, summons, warrants of arrests, search warrants, the production of persons arrested and the disposal of things, seized shall apply, as far as may be, to all actions taken in these respects under this Act (Central Act II of 1974.).
24. Power to Prohibition and Excise Officer in matters of investigation. (1) Any Prohibition and Excise Officer 52[not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector] may, as regards offences under this Act, exercise within such area as may be notified in this behalf, powers conferred on an Officer incharge of a police station by the provision of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ((Central Act II of 1974.):
Provided that any such power shall be subject to such restrictions and modifications, as may be prescribed.
(2) For the purposes of section 156 of the said Code the area in regard to which a Prohibition and Excise Officer is empowered under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a police station and such officer shall be deemed to be the officer-in-charge of such station.
25. 53Cognizance and trial of offences. Notwithstanding anything contained in the code of Criminal Procedure 1973, all offences under this Act, shall be cognizable and provisions of the said code with respect to cognizable offences shall apply to them:
53[Provided that the offences punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years under this Act shall be tried in accordance with the procedure prescribed in Chapter XXI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act II of 1974.).]
54[25-A. Enhanced punishment after previous conviction. If any person after having been previously convicted of an offence punishable under this Act, subsequently commits and is convicted of an offence punishable under this Act, he shall be liable upto twice the punishment which might be imposed on the first conviction under this Act.]
26. Punishment for vexatious search of arrest. Any officer or person exercising powers under this Act who,
(a) without reasonable ground of suspicion enters searches or causes to be searched any closed place; or
(b) vexatiously and unnecessarily seizes the property of any person on the pretence of seizing or searching for anything liable to confiscation under this Act; or
(c) vexatiously and unnecessarily detains, searches or arrests any person; or
(d) maliciously and falsely lays information leading to a search, seizure, detention or arrest; or
(e) in any other way maliciously exceeds his lawful powers,
shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend upto six months, or with fine which may extend upto five hundred rupees or with both.
Chapter - VI
MISCELLANEOUS
55[27. Omitted. [XXX]]
28. Duty of officials of all Departments and local bodies to assist. Officials of all departments of the Government and of all local bodies shall be legally bound to assist any Prohibition or Police Officer in carrying out the provisions of this Act.
29. Offences to be reported, etc. Every Official employed by the Government or by any local body other than a Police or, any Prohibition and Excise Officer shall be bound to give immediate information at the nearest police station or to a Prohibition and Excise Officer of all breaches of any of the provisions of this Act which may come to his knowledge and all such officials shall be bound to take all reasonable measures in their power to prevent the commission of any such breaches which they may know or have reason to believe are about or likely to be committed.
30. Protection of action taken under this Act. No suit or other legal proceedings shall lie against the Government or any officer or any other person empowered to exercise powers or to perform the functions under this Act for anything in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act.
31. Overriding effect. Save as otherwise provided, the provisions of this Act shall have effect, notwithstanding anything in consistent therewith contained in the provisions of the 56Telangana Excise Act, 1968 (Act 17 of 1968) and the rules made thereunder for the time being in force.
57[31-A. Power to remove difficulties. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Government may make such orders not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to them to be necessary or expedient for the purpose of removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiration of two years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid down before the Legislature of the State.]
32. Savings. Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to preclude,
(a) the 58[Telangana State Beverages Corporation Limited/Agency] to carry on trade in liquor in accordance with rules made in this behalf;
(b) the buying and selling of liquor carried on by the military canteens in the State under any licence granted in accordance with the provisions of the 59Telangana Excise Act, 1968 (Act 17 of 1968) and the rule made thereunder; and
60[(c) the consumption and utilization of medicines, toilet preparations and other food material containing alcohol.]
61[Explanation: Liquor for the purposes of this section does not include arrack.]
62[32-A. Transitional provision. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the 63Telangana Prohibition Act, 1995, the Telangana Liquor (Issue of Permit and Licence) Rules, 1995, the Indian Contract Act, 1872 (Central Act IX of 1872) or the terms and conditions of any agreement entered into with the licensing authority under this Act or under the said rules, for the grant of all such permits and licences on health grounds on the recommendation of the notified medical authorities specified under the said rules shall stand cancelled in public interest; and accordingly no suit or other proceeding shall be entertained or continued in any court against such permitting or licensing authority or any person or authority what so ever for the enforcement of any terms and conditions of such permit or licence so terminated or for any damages or compensation on the ground that any loss is sustained by the termination thereof before its expiry.
(2) within a period of seven days from the date of commencement of this Act, every licencee shall surrender to the permitting or licensing authority, the entire stock of liquor on the date of such commencement, is in the possession of any holder of any permit or licence which stood terminated under sub-section (1) on such terms and conditions, as may be prescribed.
(3) All applications made for grant of permit or licence pending before the permitting or licensing authority on the appointed date and every action taken, or enquiry made in respect of such application, shall abate and all fees paid in connection therewith (including the application fee and licence fee, if any) already paid shall be refunded.]
33. Power to make Rules. (1) The Government may, by notification, make rules for carrying out all or any of the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall, immediately after it is made, be laid before the Legislature of the State, if it is in session and if it is not in session, in the session, immediately following for a total period of fourteen days which may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions and if, before the expiration of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, the Legislature agree in making any modification in the rule or in the annulment of the rule, the rule shall from the date on which the modification or annulment is notified have effect only in such modified form or shall stand annulled as the case may be so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.
34. Amendment of Act 17 of 1968. In the 64Telangana Excise Act, 1968,
(1) In section 1, for sub-section (2), the following shall be substituted, namely;
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Telangana:
Provided that on and from the date of commencement of the Telangana Prohibition Act, 1995 the provisions of this Act shall, in so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of the said Act cease to operate.
(2) In section 5, for sub-section (1) the following shall be substituted, namely:
(1) The Government may appoint such number of Additional Commissioners, Joint Commissioners, Deputy. Commissioners and Assistant Commissioners of Prohibition and Excise and District Prohibition and Excise Officers and such other officers as they think fit for the purpose of performing the functions respectively conferred on them by or under this Act ;
(3) Throughout the Act for the words Excise Officer Commissioner of Excise , Additional Commissioners of Excise , Deputy Commissioner of Excise , Assistant Commissioner of Excise , Excise Superintendent , Assistant Excise Superintendent and Excise Department , the words, Prohibition and Excise Officers , Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise , Additional Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise , Deputy Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise , Assistant Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise , Prohibition and Excise Superintendent Assistant Prohibition and Excise and Superintendent and Prohibition and Excise Department shall respectively be substituted.
65[35. Omitted. [XXX]]