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Court Acquits Accused in Ganja Trafficking Case Due to Lack of Credible Evidence

Background

The appellants, accused Nos. 1 and 2 in S.C. No. 9 of 2007, were convicted and sentenced by the Special Judge (NDPS Act Cases) in Vadakara for the offense under Section 20(b)(II)(c) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. They challenged the conviction and sentence in this appeal.

Arguments

The main arguments presented by the appellants were: 1. The trial court did not consider the statement filed by the accused under Section 233(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code while appreciating the evidence of material witnesses. 2. There were discrepancies regarding the time of occurrence in the crime and occurrence reports. 3. There was non-compliance with Sections 52 and 57 of the NDPS Act, which caused prejudice to the accused. 4. The prosecution failed to provide satisfactory evidence on the manner of sampling and the safe custody of the seized contraband. 5. The prosecution only took a sample from one packet out of the 23 packets seized, and there was no evidence regarding the total quantity of ganja in that packet.

Court's Analysis and Reasoning

The court found that the prosecution had failed to establish the foundational facts beyond a reasonable doubt. The evidence of the independent witnesses, PWs 7 and 8, contradicted the prosecution's case and supported the defense's version of events. The court also noted the discrepancies in the time of occurrence and the non-compliance with the procedural requirements under the NDPS Act, which caused prejudice to the accused.

Decision

The court allowed the appeal, set aside the conviction and sentence, and acquitted the appellants/accused Nos. 1 and 2 of the offense under Section 20(b)(II)(c) of the NDPS Act. The court held that the prosecution had failed to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt, and the presumption of innocence had not been rebutted.