Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to prevent any person from being prosecuted under any other law for any act or omission which constitutes a forest offence or from being liable under such other law to any higher punishment or penalty than that provided by this Act or the rules made thereunder : Provided that no person shall be punished twice for the same offence. Power to compound offences 55 (1) Any Forest Officer specially empowered in this behalf may accept from any person reasonable suspected of having committed any forest offence other than an offence under section 50 or section 52 a sum of money by way of compensation for the offence which may have been committed; and where any property has been seized as liable to confiscation, may release the same on payment of the value thereof as estimated by such officer. (2) on the payment of such sum of money or such value or both as the case may be to such officer the accused person, if in custody, shall be discharged, the property seized shall be released, and no further proceedings shall be taken against such person or property. 1(3) Nothing contained in sub-sections (1) and (2) shall apply to any offence in respect of : (a) any sandalwood, where the weight of such sandalwood involved in such offence is more than one hundred kilograms; and (b) any scheduled timber (other than sandalwood) where the value of such scheduled timber involved in such offence is more than ten thousand years. Presumption that timber or (56) When in any proceedings taken under this Act or in consequence of anything done under this Act a question arises as to whether any forest produce is the forest produce belongs to the Central or State Government property of the 2Central or State Government such produce shall be presumed to be the property of the 1Central or State Government until the contrary is proved. Punishment for habitual offence 56-A1 In respect of any offence relating to any scheduled timber, any timber who is found by the Magistrate to be habitual offender, such person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years but which shall not be less than three years and with fine which may extend to twenty thousand rupees but which shall not be less than fifteen thousand rupees. Explanation : For the purpose of this section, "habitual offender" means a person, who before or after the date of publication of the Tamil Nadu Forest (Amendment) Act, 1979 in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette has been sentenced to a substantive term of imprisonment (such sentence not having been set aside in appeal or revision) for not less than three occasions for any offence relating to any scheduled timber, each of the subsequent sentence having been passed in respect of such offence relating to any scheduled timber committed after the passing of the sentence on the previous occasions. 56-B The offence in respect of any scheduled timber shall be non-bail able and the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974) with respect to non-bail able offences shall apply to those offences. Certain offences to be non- bailable 56-C Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974) any offence in respect of any scheduled timber shall be deemed to be a cognizable offence within the meaning of that Code. Offences under the Act to be cognizable 56-D Whenever any person is accused of any offence under this Act in respect of any scheduled timber, it shall be presumed until the contrary is proved that such person has committed such offence. Presumption as to commission of offence in respect of scheduled timber 56-E (1) The Government may, by notification, add any timber to or omit any timer from, the Schedule. Power to amend schedule (2) All references made in this Act to the schedule shall be construed as references to the said schedule as for the time being amended in exercise of the powers conferred by this section. CHAPTER – VIII CATTLE TRESPASS Cattle Trespass Act, 1871 to apply