ORDER :

1. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and learned HCGP for the respondent.

2. Petitioner is the sole accused in Crime No. 105/2020 pending before the Court of XXXIII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge and Special Judge for NDPS cases at Bengaluru for the offence punishable under Section 22(c) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short ‘the NDPS Act’) and Section 14 of Foreigners Act (for short ‘the Act’).

3. The petitioner has approached this Court challenging the order dated 25.06.2021 passed by the trial Court allowing the application filed by the prosecution under Section 36A(4) of the NDPS Act extending the time for completion of the investigation and rejecting the application filed by the petitioner under Section 167(2) of Cr.P.C. seeking statutory bail.

4. Brief facts of the case that could be necessary for the purpose of disposal of this petition are:

On the compliant of respondent No. 2 - J.C. Nagar Police Station, Bengaluru registered FIR in Crime No. 105/2020 against the petitioner herein for the offence punishable under Sections 22(c) of the NDPS Act and Section 14 of the Act. In the complaint it is averred that on receipt of a credible information that near Millers Road, one foreigner was in possession of narcotic drugs and was selling it to the customers, after entering, the said information in the station house diary and after obtaining permission from the Higher Officer, the complainant along with panchas and other police officers raided the spot at about 12.40 p.m. and from a distance he saw that the foreigner was selling narcotic substances to the public. Thereafter, a decoy was sent to verify the credible information and on receiving signal from the decoy, the complainant and the staff surrounded the petitioner and apprehended him and from his person they have seized MDMA totally weighing 26.50 grams and also a sum of Rs. 1,200 in cash. The seized substances and cash were subjected to mahazar and thereafter-wards, the petitioner was arrested and brought to the Police Station. On the basis of the complaint, FIR was registered in Crime No. 105/2020. The petitioner was produced before the Jurisdictional Magistrate on 11.12.2020 and on said day, he was remanded to the judicial custody and since then he is in judicial custody.

5. The prosecutor has filed an application on 03.06.2021 under Section 36A(4) of the NDPS Act seeking extension of time for completion of investigation, whereas the petitioner had filed an application under Section 167(2) of Cr.P.C. on 09.06.2021. The trial Court vide order impugned has allowed the application filed by the prosecution and dismissed the application filed by the petitioner.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the application filed by the prosecution was not supported by the report of the Public Prosecutor as mandated under the proviso to Section 36A(4) of the NDPS Act. He submits that even a copy of the application was not served on the petitioner and the petitioner was also not kept present before the trial Court at the time of passing order on the application filed by the prosecution seeking extension of time.

7. Learned HCGP opposes the prayer made by the petitioner and contends that the report of the Investigating Officer has been submitted along with application seeking extension of time and in the said report, status of the investigation is clearly stated and for the reason that FSL report was not obtained from the Forensic Science Laboratory, the charge sheet could not be filed and only on this ground the trial Court extended the time for investigation which is legal and therefore prays that the impugned order does not call for interference.

8. I have carefully considered the rival arguments addressed on both the side and also perused the material on record.

9. The prosecution has filed an application seeking extension of time for completion of the investigation on 03.06.2021. The period of 180 days from the date