Section 13 in The Indian Forest (Maharashtra Unification and Amendment) Act, 1960
13. Substitution of section 68 of Act XVI of 1927.
- For section 68 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely :-"68. Power to compound offences. - (1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, empower a Forest Officer-(a)to accept from any person about whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed any forest offence, other than an offence specified in section 62 or section 63, payment of a sum of money or, at his discretion, an undertaking in writing to pay a sum money, by way of compensation for the offence which such person is suspected to have committed, and(b)when arty property has been seized as liable to confiscation, to release the same on the payment of, or at his discretion, on acceptance of an undertaking in writing to pay, the value thereof as named by such officer.(2)On the payment of, or on acceptance of an undertaking in writing to pay, such sum of money, or such named value, or both, as the case may be, to such officer, the suspected person, if in custody, shall be discharged, the property, if any, seized shall be released, and no further proceedings, other than those under section 82 where necessary, shall be taken against such person or property.(3)A Forest Officer shall not be empowered under this section unless he is a Forest Officer of a rank not inferior to that of a Ranger and is in receipt of a monthly salary amounting to at least one hundred rupees, and the sum of money accepted or agreed to be accepted as compensation under clause (a) of sub-section (1) shall in no case exceed the sum of five hundred rupees.".
