FIR, seizure should be foremost before sealing shops: HC

CHENNAI: While setting aside the lock and seal order passed against an Aavin Milk Booth in Coonoor, the Nilgiris district on charges of selling banned tobacco products, the Madras High Court held that firstly, the authorities should have lodged an FIR and then seize the banned products.

After the seizure of tobacco products, the immediate action of the respondents would have been lodging the First Information Report (FIR) and producing the seized items before the police, Justice N Sathish Kumar held.

The judge passed the order on allowing a petition filed by R Sampooranam, who ran an Aavin Milk Booth in Coonoor from 2008.

As there were allegations that the petitioner was selling banned tobacco products, her shop was inspected by the Coonoor Tahsildar and municipality commissioner. The authorities further locked and sealed the shop on February 2, 2022.

Therefore she prayed for a direction to set aside the lock and seal order refusing the charges of the authorities.

Recording the submissions, the judge held that there was no evidence to show that the petitioner was selling banned products.

"..without any materials to show that the banned items were sold and seized from the shop, sealing the shop, that too without giving any opportunity to explain the circumstances or otherwise, without issuing any show cause, cannot be sustained in the eye of law and hence the shop of the petitioner cannot be sealed, " the judge ordered.

With the above observations, the judge directed Tahsildar, Coonoor to hand over the shop key to the petitioner within a week.