773 officer who, in the conduct of investigation of an offence against the excise, exercises the powers conferred by the Code of Criminal Procedure upon an officer in charge of a police station for the investigation of a cogenizable offence, a police officer within the meaning of section 25 of the ?" That case arose under the Bengal Excise Act and Mukerji J. who delivered the leading judgment, after pointing out that the powers .of an Excise Officer acting under the Opium Act (I of 1878) prior to its amendment by Opium (Bengal Amendment) Act, (Bengel Act V of 1933) are not quite the same as those of an Excise Officer acting under the Bengal Excise Act (Bengal Act V of 1909) observed that during arguments a much broader question had been submitted for the decision of the Full Bench as arising upon the order of reference taken along with the facts of the cases in which the reference was made.