5. Financial Commissioner and Collector.-

(1) The State Government may, by notification, appoint an Excise and Taxation Commissioner who shall exercise all the powers of Financial Commissioner, and subject to the control of the State Government, the general superintendence and administration of all matters relating to excise shall vest in him.

(2) The State Government may, by notification, appoint as many Collectors as it may deem fit, to discharge in any specified area the functions of the Collector under this Act and the Collector shall, subject to the control of the Financial Commissioner, control all other Excise Officers within his jurisdiction.

(3) The jurisdiction of the Financial Commissioner shall extend to the whole State and the jurisdiction of Collectors shall extend to the areas of the State in which they are for the time being employed.

6. Other classes of Excise Officers and their powers and jurisdiction.-

(1) There shall be such other classes of Excise Officers as the State Government may, by notification, declare and it may appoint as many persons as it deems fit to be the Excise Officers of these classes.

(2) The State Government may, by notification, invest in any person, not being an Excise Officer, with powers to perform all or any of the functions of an Excise Officer, under this Act, and such person shall in the exercise of these functions be deemed to be an Excise Officer.

(3) The State Government shall, by notification, declare the powers to be exercised under this Act by the Excise Officer of each class.

(4) The jurisdiction of the Excise Officers shall, unless the State Government otherwise directs, extend to the districts in which they are for the time being employed.

7. Persons appointed under this Act to be public servants.-

All persons appointed under this Act shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

8. Power to enter and inspect.-

Any Excise Officer, not below such rank as the State Government may, by notification specify,- 

(a) enter and inspect, at any time by day or by night, any place in which any licensed manufacturer carries on the manufacture of or stores any liquor;

(b) enter and inspect, at any time, any place in which any liquor is kept for sale by any person holding a license under this Act;

(c) examine any accounts and registers, test, measure or weigh any materials, stills, utensils, implements, apparatus or testing instruments or liquor found in that place;

(d) seize any accounts, register, measure, weights or testing instruments which he has reason to believe to be false or incorrect; and

(e) seize any liquor which he has reasons to believe to be un- accounted for in the accounts and registers maintained by the licensee.

9. Power to investigate.-

(1) The State Government may, by notification, invest any Excise Officer, with power to investigate any offence punishable under this Act, committed within the limits of the area in which the officer exercises jurisdiction.

(2) Every officer so empowered may within those limits exercise the same powers in respect of such investigation as an officer-in-charge of a police station may exercise in a cognizable case under the provisions of Chapter XII of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

10. Powers of Excise Officer to search, seize etc.-

(1) Whenever any Excise Officer not below such rank as the State Government may, by notification, specify has reason to believe that an offence punishable under this Act, has been, is being, or is likely to be, committed by any person, in any place, and that a search warrant cannot be obtained without affording the offender an opportunity of escape or of concealing evidence of the offence, he may, at any time, by day or night, enter and search such place.

(2) Any Excise Officer specified in sub-section (1) may seize anything found in such place 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 such offence as aforesaid.

11. Powers of Magistrate to issue warrant for search or arrest.-

A Magistrate having reason to believe that an offence under this Act has been, is being, or is likely to be, committed may-

(a) issue a warrant for the search of any place in which he has reason to believe that any liquor, still, utensil, implement, apparatus or materials, in respect of which such offence has been, is being, or is likely to be, committed are kept or concealed; and

(b) issue a warrant for the arrest of any person whom he has reason to believe to have been, to be, or to be likely to be, engaged in the commission of any such offence.

12. Powers of Excise Officers to obtain information.-

(1) Any Excise Officer, not below such rank as the State Government may, by notification specify, may by order require any person to furnish to any specified authority or person any such information in his possession concerning any unlawful import, export, transport, manufacture, sale, purchase or possession of any liquor, or any material, still, utensil, implement or apparatus whatsoever, for the purpose of manufacturing any liquor, as may be specified in the order.

(2) Any person upon whom an order is served under sub-section (1) shall be bound, in the absence of reasonable excuse, to furnish correct information.

13. Police Officers to aid Excise Officers etc. and to take charge of articles seized.-

(1) All Police Officers shall aid the Excise Officers and other authorities in carrying out the purposes of this Act.

(2) Every officer-in-charge of a police station shall take charge of, and keep in safe custody, pending the orders of a Judicial Magistrate or Collector concerned or an officer empowered under section 9 of this Act, to investigate the case, all articles seized under this Act which may be delivered to him, and shall allow any Excise Officer who may accompany such articles to the police station, or may be deputed for the purpose by his superior officer to affix his seal to the articles and take samples of and from them and all samples so taken shall also be sealed with the seal of the officer-in-charge of the police station.

14. Power to close liquor vends.-

The Financial Commissioner shall prescribe the day(s) on which any liquor vend shall remain closed for observance of the dry days approved by the State Government or the Election Commission of India or the State Election Commission:

Provided that if the District Magistrate receives an information that a riot or unlawful assembly has occurred or is likely to occur in the vicinity of a liquor vend, he may, subject to the reasons to be recorded in writing, by order, require the licensee of such a liquor vend to keep the vend closed at such time as may be specified in such order:

Provided further that the order passed under the preceding proviso shall, at one time, remain in force for not more than twenty-four hours from the time, when it is made:

Provided further that the District Magistrate shall inform the Financial Commissioner and the Collector concerned of the order passed by him as soon as such order is made.