Attachment of property of person absconding :
Section – 83. (1) The Court issuing a proclamation under section 82 may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, at any time after the issue of the proclamation, order the attachment of any property, movable or immovable, or both, belonging to the proclaimed person :
Provided that where at the time of the issue of the proclamation the Court is satisfied, by affidavit or otherwise, that the person in relation to whom the proclamation is to be issued,—
| (a) | is about to dispose of the whole or any part of his property, or | |
| (b) | is about to remove the whole or any part of his property from the local jurisdiction of the Court, |
it may order the attachment simultaneously with the issue of the proclamation.
(2) Such order shall authorise the attachment of any property belonging to such person within the district in which it is made; and it shall authorise the attachment of any property belonging to such person without such district when endorsed by the District Magistrate within whose district such pro-perty is situate.
(3) If the property ordered to be attached is a debt or other movable property, the attachment under this section shall be made—
| (a) | by seizure; or | |
| (b) | by the appointment of a receiver; or | |
| (c) | by an order in writing prohibiting the delivery of such property to the proclaimed person or to any one on his behalf; or | |
| (d) | by all or any two of such methods, as the Court thinks fit. |
(4) If the property ordered to be attached is immovable, the attachment under this section shall, in the case of land paying revenue to the State Government, be made through the Collector of the district in which the land is situate, and in all other cases—
| (a) | by taking possession; or | |
| (b) | by the appointment of a receiver; or | |
| (c) | by an order in writing prohibiting the payment of rent on delivery of property to the proclaimed person or to any one on his behalf; or | |
| (d) | by all or any two of such methods, as the Court thinks fit. |
(5) If the property ordered to be attached consists of livestock or is of a perishable nature, the Court may, if it thinks it expedient, order immediate sale thereof, and in such case the proceeds of the sale shall abide the order of the Court.
(6) The powers, duties and liabilities of a receiver appointed under this section shall be the same as those of a receiver appointed under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908).
COMMENTS
JOINT COMMITTEE OF PARLIAMENT
Simultaneous proclamation and attachment in certain cases – This section corresponds to sub-sections (1) to (6) of section 88 of the old Code. The proviso to sub-section (1) is new. On this the Joint Committee of Parliament has observed:
“The existing provision permits the issue of an order of attachment of property simultaneously with the issue of proclamation. This may result in hardship in some cases where the person concerned, even before he comes to know of the issue of the proclamation, finds his property being attached suddenly. At the same time, the Committee cannot shut its eyes to the fact that if prior notice is insisted on in all cases, the purpose would be defeated in some cases as the property would be secreted. The appropriate course, in the opinion of the Committee, would be to provide that an order of attachment should be capable of being issued simultaneously with the proclamation in certain special circumstances, e.g., when the absconding person is about to dispose of his property. Sub-clause (1) has, therefore, been amended with a view to providing for the simultaneous issue of proclamation and attachment in certain special circumstances.”