(1) Any officer empowered by the State Government or the Commissioner in this behalf, may for the purpose of this Act, require any dealer carrying on business in any goods to produce before him the accounts and other documents, and to furnish any information relating to the stocks of the goods of or purchases, sales and deliveries of the goods by the dealer and also any other information relating to his business.
2 (i) All accounts and registers maintained by dealers in the ordinary course of their business and documents relating to the stock of the goods, or purchases, sales and deliveries of the goods by any dealer, computer hardware and software used for data inputing, processing and storage of all such information the goods in their possession and their offices, shops, godowns, vessels, receptacles or vehicles, shall be open to inspection at all reasonable times by such officers as may be authorized by State Government in this behalf.
(ii) For the purpose of inspection referred to in clause (i), any such officer shall have power to enter and search any office, shop, godown, vessel, receptacle, vehicle or any other place of business or any building or place where such officer has reason to believe that the dealer keeps or is for the time being keeping, any accounts, registers or documents of his business:
Provided that no residential accommodation (not being a place of business-cumresidence) shall be entered into and searched by such officer except on the authority of a search warrant issued by a Magistrate having jurisdiction over the area, and all searches under this sub-section shall so far, as may be, made in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974).
(3) If any such officer has reason to suspect that any dealer is attempting to evade the payment of any tax, fee or other amounts due from him under this Act, he may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, seize such accounts, registers, records and computer hardware and software, or other documents of the dealer as he may consider necessary and shall give the dealer a receipt for the same. The accounts, registers, records and computer hardware and software and documents so seized shall be retained by such officer only for so long as may be necessary for their examination and for any inquiry or proceeding under this Act:
Provided that accounts, registers, records and computer hardware and software and other documents so seized shall not be retained by such officer for a period exceeding one hundred and eighty days from the date of seizure, unless the reason for retaining the same beyond the said period are recorded by him, in writing and the approval of the next higher authority is obtained and such approval in any case shall not be for more than sixty days at a time.
(4) It shall be open to the State Government to authorize different classes of officers for the purpose of taking action under clause (i) of sub-section (2).