25. Management of offices of the affairs of Stamp Department in Collector's Office.
(a)For the better supervision of all matters connected with the revenue derived from stamps, the business of the Stamp Department at the headquarters of a district shall be conducted by a Deputy Collector or an Assistant under the title of Stamp Officer, acting under the direction and control of the Collector. Generally, such officer will be required to see that all laws and rules relating to stamps as defined in the Stamp Act in force and the rules made thereunder and circulars are duly observed by the public and the officers concerned throughout the district. Such officer, however, will not be entitled to exercise any of the powers which are by law specially reserved to the Collector.(b)Conducting of criminal prosecutions. - It will also be the duty of the Stamp Officer to see that criminal prosecutions ordered by the Collector are properly conducted before the Court which tries such cases. In important and difficult cases he should, with the permission of the Court trying the cases, conduct the prosecution in person. Whenever necessary the Court impounding a document should be referred to as regards the evidence or information on which it acted.(c)The Collector includes all Deputy Collectors in charge of sub-division, Senior Deputy Collectors at the Sadar stations of districts, District Registrars including the Registrar of Calcutta, District Sub-Registrars and Sub-Registrars and all officers, holding temporary charge of sub-registry offices, who are appointed to be Collectors for the purpose of denoting upon the instrument, by endorsement, the payment of duty in respect of another instrument, as provided for in section 16 of the Act.(d)Occasional inspection of stamped documents enjoined. - Heads of offices in which adhesive stamps are used or filed are required to cause an occasional inspection to be made of documents that have been filed, in order to ascertain that the stamps have been properly punched and have not been subsequently removed from the documents on which they are used. The inspection should be made at least once a quarter. The check herein prescribed applies equally to all papers which require adhesive labels, and they should be subjected to similar scrutiny.(e)Duties of Record-keeper. - It shall be the duty of the Record-keeper on receiving records from any office or department for deposit in the record-room to ascertain personally or through the examination of a responsible assistant that on every document chargeable with stamp duty the head ministerial officer concerned has made the prescribed entry as to sufficiency or otherwise of the stamp borne and that the rules regarding cancellation of Court-fee stamps have been properly carried out. Should any of the stamps show signs of having been tampered with, or should there be any deficiency, or any suspicious circumstances, he must at once submit a report to his superior officer. This examination may be made at the time of second punching.(f)Stamps frauds to be at once reported. - Local authorities must report immediately to the Government, any instance of forgery or fraudulent use of any description of stamps, whether general, or judicial, coming to their notice. Such reports should invariably contain full particulars as to the nature of fraud perpetrated, and, if possible, specimens should be submitted.(g)Doubtful stamps to be sent to the Government. - When a Collector is unable to decide the genuineness of a stamp brought before him, he should send it to the Government direct.(h)District references to be submitted through Commissioner. - References made to the Chief Controlling Revenue Authority by Collectors under section 56 of the Indian Stamp Act should be submitted through the Commissioner of the Division with his opinion.(i)Compounding or withdrawal of stamp offences by district officers. - With reference to the provisions contained in section 70 of the Act. district officers have been authorised by the Board of Revenue to withdraw any prosecution instituted by them in respect of an offence under the stamp law and to compound such offence if they are of opinion that there is sufficient and reasonable cause for so doing.(j)Inadequate fines to be brought to the notice of Criminal Courts. - If in cases of prosecutions instituted under the stamp law the fines inflicted by the Criminal Courts be of smaller amount than the penalty provided under the Indian Stamp Act or the penalty imposed by the Collector, the Revenue Officers should bring to the notice of the Criminal Courts trying such cases the amount of penalty in each case provided by the Stamp Act, and the policy of imposing a fine which is less than that provided under the Act.(k)(i)Return of receipts and expenditure. - Annual Return (vide Appendix, Form No. 1) of the receipts and expenditure on account of stamps should be submitted by the Collector every year to the Government in the form prescribed.(ii)Explanation of increase or decrease. - Full and intelligent explanations should be given to the above return, of the causes affecting the increase or decrease in the sales of each kind of stamp.(iii)Above return to be submitted direct to Government. - The return above referred to should be forwarded direct to the Government within fifteen days from the close of the period reported on. Duplicate copy should at the same time be sent to the Commissioner, who will, after careful scrutiny, review them and submit his remarks to the Government within seven days of the receipts of the return in his office.(iv)Stamp Registers. - The following registers shall be maintained in the Stamp Department of the district:(1)Register of applications for refund of the value or renewal of stamps, vide Appendix, Form No. 3.(2)Register of Stamp Cases, vide Appendix, Form No. 4.(3)Register of Stamp Vendors' licence, vide Appendix, Form No. 5.(4)Daily register of Court fees realised, vide Appendix, Form No. 6.
