Report No. 29
Section 248
Tax Fraud & Tax Evasion
(1) Whoever,-
(a) presents untruly or conceals before the authority a fact (data) of importance in determining his liability to tax and thereby or by any other type of conduct reduces,
(b) by deceiving the authority takes advantage of exemption from taxation or tax allowance, to which he is not entitled,
(c) in the absence of the condition fixed by law, or without official permission, diverts from inland revenue control, a product or produce reserved to inland revenue or acquires, hides or helps to alienate for pecuniary profit a product or produce diverted by another shall be punished with loss of liberty not exceeding three years.
(2) Punishment of the crime shall be loss of liberty ranging from six months to five years, if committed by a recidivist.
(3) In applying this section, it shall be deemed to include duties.
Section 249
Customs duty crimes
(1) Whoever,-
(a) diverts dutiable goods from customs duty control or makes to the authority a false declaration relating to circumstances essential for customs of the dutiable goods (smuggling),
(b) acquires, or hides for pecuniary profit smuggled dutiable goods or co-operates with the same purpose in alienating smuggled dutiable goods (receiving smuggled goods) shall be punished with loss of liberty not exceeding three years.
(2) Punishment shall be loss of liberty ranging from, six months to five years if the perpetrator is a recidivist.
Section 250
Confiscation
(1) In cases of infringement of duties in connection with economy, speculation, profiteering, crimes relating to public supplies, crimes violating foreign exchange control and of tax fraud as defined in clause (c), para. (1), section 248, money or other objects with which the crime was committed and belonging to the perpetrator, shall be confiscated.
(2) Confiscation may also be applied, if the money or other object is not the property or the perpetrator, but the proprietor had previously known that the crime would be committed.
(3) In cases of a customs duty crime the goods in respect of which the crime was committed shall be confiscated; goods being the property of a state organ or of a co-operative cannot be confiscated.
(4) If the money or other object, in respect of which the crime was committed, cannot be confiscated, the perpetrator shall be obliged to pay the value of the object subject to confiscation.
(5) The Court may omit confiscation or the obligation on the perpetrator to pay the value subject to confiscation, if that would mean for the perpetrator an inequitable prejudice not in proportion with the nature of the crime.
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