Thane: A sessions court acquitted a Bhayandar-based shopkeeper accused of selling banned gutkha, holding that the police do not have the legal authority to initiate prosecution under the Food Safety and Standards Act.The case dates back to Dec 2020, when a police team conducted a raid on a grocery shop in Bhayandar and seized banned gutkha and tobacco products valued at around Rs 34,000. An FIR was registered under sections of the IPC, including Sections 328, 188 and 273, along with provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act. While delivering the judgement on April 6, the court highlighted critical procedural lapses. The court observed that under the Food Safety law, only a designated food safety officer is empowered to file a complaint and initiate prosecution. In this case, the police directly registered the offence and filed a charge sheet, which the court held was not legally sustainable. The court noted that even the invocation of IPC Section 188 was flawed. As per legal provisions, courts can take cognisance of such offences only upon a written complaint by the competent public servant concerned. In the absence of such a complaint, the proceedings were rendered invalid. The prosecution also failed to produce any food analysis report, did not examine independent witnesses, and could not establish that the seized products were sold to anyone or caused harm.
