The Calcutta Weekly Notes Monday November 30 1942

His point is that in cases where some person or class of persons ihabiting a penalised area is exempted from liability to pay the fine the imposition on the rest of the inhabitants is not warranted by the Ordinance and is illegal. [...] They read as under: 3. (i) If it appears to the Provincial Government that the inhabitants of any area are concerned in or abetting the commission of offences prejudicially affecing the defence of British India or the efficient proscution of war or are harbouring persons concerned in the commission of such offences or are failing to render all the msistance in their power to discover or ap [...] On the language of the above provisions the argument is that the basis of the Goernment’s authority to impose a collective line is that it should appear to them that the inhabitants of a particular area have been concerned in the prejudicial activities specified. [...] It is to be noticed that the exemption is not from the fine but from liability to pay the fine; and the grounds on which such exemption may be granted are not defined. [...] The jurisdiction of the Court which can try such a suit is dtermined by the market-value of the suit 1 ruperty.