Section 67: ¹[Cognizance of offences and credit of fines to Excise Department]

(1) No magistrate shall take cognizance of an offence punishable–

²[(a) under Section 54 or Section 54-B or Section 54-D or Section 57 or Section 59 or Section 62-A or Section 63 except on his own knowledge or suspicion or on a complaint or the report of an Excise Officer; or]

(b) under Section 55 or Section 56 ³[or Section 58 or Section 58A] or Section 60 or Section 61 or Section 62 except ⁴[on a complaint or the] report of an officer not below the rank of the Excise commissioner or an Excise Officer ⁴[duly empowered] in that behalf.

⁴[Explanation] — The report of an Excise Officer under this sub-section shall be treated for all purposes of trial to be a report made by a police officer within the meaning of Clause (b) of sub-section (1) of Section 190 of the Code of Criminal Procedure ⁵[1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974)].

(2) Except with the special sanction of the ⁶[State Government] no Magistrate shall take cognizance of any offence punishable under this Act, unless the prosecution is instituted within a year after the date on which the offence is alleged to have been committed.

⁷[(3) Notwithstanding anything in any other law for the time being in force in the State, all sums realised on account of fines imposed by a Magistrate on conviction of a person for any offence under this Act, shall, on such realisation, be credited to the head of account to which the receipts of the Excise Department are credited, after deducting the expenses incurred in connection with such realisation .]