JUDGMENT - G.D. KAMAT, J.:---The appellant has been convicted by the judgment and order dated 11th of March, 1987, in Sessions Case No. 67 of 86, by the Additional Sessions Judge, Panaji, under section 20(b)(ii) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, for short "the Act" and sentenced to 10 years Rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rupees one lakh and, in default thereof, to undergo an imprisonment of 2 and half years.

2. The prosecution case against the appellant is that on 28th September, 1986, at about 10.15 hours the appellant was found near the sign board showing Coco-Banana Bar and Restaurant. Calangute-Goa, in suspicious circumstances, with a polythene bag in his hand. S.D.P.O. Shri Dilip Kumar (P.W. 2), who is in charge of the Narcotic Squad, while on his patrolling duty at Calangute, apprehended the appellant near the beach and recovered 1.5 kgs. of charas, rolled sticks in different sizes. Foreign currency in American dollars of the value of 500 U.S. Dollars ($ 100 x 5 bills) and Indian Currency of Rupees 781/- was also recovered from him. On the subsequent day, i.e. 29th September, 1986, the police raided Room No. 21 of Bismark Hotel at Vasco-da-Gama, where the appellant was a lodger, and recovered about 90 grams of charas, against rolled into sticks. The value of the charas thus apprehended is about Rs. 6,000/-.

3. In support of the prosecution case, seven witnesses were examined. But, considering the controversy in this appeal we may not be concerned with the evidence of some of the witnesses as the learned Additional Sessions Judge has not believed the prosecution story is relation to the recovery of 90 grams of charas from Room No. 21 of Bismark Hotel, Vasco-da-Gama, and a finding has been rendered that it is a concocted story. Relying on the evidence of the witnesses to whom I will make a reference at one, the learned Judge came to hold that the apprehension of charas from the appellant in the morning of 28th September, 1986, while at Calangute, is a full proof case and that is how the appellant is convicted and sentenced accordingly.

4. Coming to the evidence relating to the apprehension at Calangute the prosecution relies on four witnesses besides chemical examiner. Babu Tamse (P.W. 1) mentions that on 28th September 1986, at about 10.00 A.M., Additional Superintendent of Police Shri Dilip Kumar (P.W. 2) came to Calangute Police Station and told them to accompany him on a patrolling duty. He had come in a jeep with staff and, according to this witness, he and P.S.I. Vaman P. Tari (P.W. 7) followed Shri Dilip Kumar in another jeep. That the accused who was holding a polythene bag in his hand, raised some suspicion which made Shri Dilip Kumar to approach him and one the bag was checked, several rolls of charas of various sizes, of the weight of about 10 grams and 20 grams, totally weighing about 1.5 kilograms, were recovered. He mentions that P.S.I. Tar (P.W. 7) secured the presence of two panchas, one Parulekar (P.W. 4) and another by name Mr. D'Souza. A panchanama was drawn up following the seizure. When the search of the appellant was taken, in one of his pockets, 500 American dollars and Indian currency worth Rs. 781/- were also seized. For enabling the samples to be forwarded for chemical analysis, two rolls, one of 20 grams and the other of 10 grams, were separately packed in an envelope duly sealed and the rest was separately packed.

In his evidence Shri Dilip Kumar (P.W. 2) who is Additional Superintendent and in-charge of narcotic squad, mentions that he is attached to Mapusa Police Station as S.D.P.O. and on 28th September, 1986, he set off from Mapusa in the company of three head-constables and one constable and came to Calangute Police Station and sought the assistance of that police station and proceeded towards Calangute bazar and, thereafter, towards the beach. On coming near the sign board indicating the location of Coco-Banana Bar and Restaurant, he found a person standing the

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