135AA. (1) If a person publishes any information relating to the value or classification or quantity of goods entered for export from India, or import into India, or the details of the exporter or importer of such goods under this Act, unless required so to do under any law for the time being in force, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees, or with both.
(2) Nothing contained in this section shall apply to any publication made by or on behalf of the Central Government.
Explanation- For the purposes of this section, the expression “publishes” includes reproducing the information in printed or electronic form and making it available for the public.”
Clause 94 seeks to insert a new section 135AA in the Customs Act, so as to make punishable the publishing of information relating to the value or classification or quantity of goods entered for export from India, or import into India, or the details of the exporter or importer of such goods, unless required so to do under any law for the time being in force. It further seeks to provide that nothing contained in the said section shall apply to any publication made by or on behalf of the Central Government.
Clause 95 seeks to insert the words, figures and letters “or section 135AA” in subsection (1) of section 137 of the Customs Act so as to provide that no court shall take cognizance of any offence under the said section 135AA, except with the previous sanction of the Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs
Similar provisions exist under the Collection of Statistics Act as provided by the research of Business Standard media team exist under which the government collects price and output data, making it an offence for the government employees from disclosing any information shared by producers. “No information contained in any information schedule and no answer to any question asked shall, except for the purposes of a prosecution under this Act, be separately published, or disclosed without suppressing the identification of informants to any agency,” the Act says. The Collection of Statistics Act, 2008 is principal legislation in India for the collection of economic, social, demographic, scientific, and environmental data. Under this Act, the government is empowered to make the rules and pass instructions for the collection of statistical data.
News source: Finance Bill 2022
Image source: Jagran Josh
