12. The ‘prosecution’ means a criminal action before the court of law for the purpose of determining ‘guilt’ or ‘innocence’ of a person charged with a crime. Civil suit refers to a civil action instituted before a court of law for realisation of a right vested in a party by law. The phrase ‘legal proceeding’ connotes a term which means the proceedings in a court of justice to get a remedy which the law permits to the person aggrieved. It includes any formal steps or measures employed therein. It is not synonymous with the ‘judicial proceedings’. Every judicial proceeding is a legal proceeding but not vice-versa, for the reason that there may be a ‘legal proceeding’ which may not be judicial at all, e.g., statutory remedies like assessment under Income Tax Act, Sales Tax Act, arbitration proceedings etc. So, the ambit of expression ‘legal proceedings’ is much wider than ‘judicial proceedings’. The expression ‘legal proceeding’ is to be construed in its ordinary meaning but it is quite distinguishable from the departmental and administrative proceedings, e.g., proceedings for registration of trade marks etc. The terms used in Section 7 i.e., suit, prosecution and legal proceedings are not inter-changeable or convey the same meaning. The phrase `legal proceedings’ is to be understood in the context of the statutory provision applicable in a particular case, and considering the preceding words used therein. In Assistant Collector of Central Excise, Guntur v. Ramdev Tobacco Company, AIR 1991 SC 506, this Court explained the meaning of the phrase “other legal proceedings” contained in Section 40(2) of the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, wherein these words have been used after suit and prosecution. The Court held that these words must be read as ejusdem generis with the preceding words i.e. suit and prosecution, as they constitute a genus. Therefore, issuance of a notice calling upon the dealer to show cause why duty should not be demanded under the Rules and why penalty should not be imposed for infraction of the statutory rules and enjoin of consequential adjudication proceedings by the appellate authority would not fall within the expression “other legal proceedings” as in the context of the said statute. ‘Legal proceedings’ do not include the administrative proceedings.