The judgment established that possession under the Indian Arms Act must be conscious possession with the requisite mental element, and the absence of recovery of any weapon or firearm supported the petitioner's case.

JUDGMENT

MILIND N.JADHAV, J. - By the present petition, the Petitioner has prayed for the following relief:-

"a) That, this Hon'ble Court exercising powers under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, 1950 and inherent powers u/s. 482 of Code Criminal Procedure, 1973 be pleased to quash and set aside the proceedings in C.C. No.2892/pw/18 pending on the file of ld. metropolitan magistrate 66 th court Andheri, Mumbai, arising out of SPL. LAC No.8/2016 registered with Sahar Police Station, Mumbai."

2. The above writ petition is filed for quashing of proceedings arising out of Special L.A.C. No.8 of 2016 registered with Sahar Police Station, Mumbai dtd. 4/12/2016 under Sec. 3 and 25 of the Indian Arms Act, 1959 (for short "the said Act") against the Petitioner. Petitioner is M.D. in Ayurvedic and permanent resident of Sangli. She planned a tour in December vacation to Kochi along with her husband and children; flight tickets from Mumbai to Kochi were booked for 3/12/2016 at 15.20 hrs.; during the security check at the Airport one live cartridge was detected and recovered from the hand baggage of the Petitioner by ASI Daya Ram Meena while screening. Petitioner was directed to open her bag and after opening the bag officers found one "K.F." and "32S&WL" live cartridge. Petitioner informed the security that she had no knowledge as to how the alleged live cartridge was found in her bag and at that stated that the same could pertain to the toy gun of her daughter who might have put it in the bag while playing. Petitioner informed that she had no knowledge or nexus with the alleged cartridge found in her bag. Petitioner further informed that she had no arms licence for holding any weapon. It is pertinent to note that apart from the live cartridge no fire arm or weapon was recovered from the bag belonging to the Petitioner.

3. On the next day i.e. 4/12/2016, First Information Report ("FIR") was registered against the Petitioner under Sec. 3 and 25 of the said Act. On 5/12/2016, Petitioner visited the police station and furnished further information, inter alia, stating that she was a resident of Sangli and adjacent to her residence was a police centre and firing range and the alleged bullet may have been found and picked up by her minor daughter and carried it to her house and kept in her hand bag. This was the only theory put forward by the Petitioner in her defence.

4. On 5/12/2016, Petitioner was arrested and produced before the Metropolitan Magistrate, 66th Court, Andheri, Mumbai and was granted bail. The investigation has been completed and police has filed the chargesheet. A copy of the chargesheet is placed on record at Exhibit "A" to the present writ petition.

5. Mr. N.U. Khan, learned counsel appearing for the Petitioner submits that on a plain reading of the chargesheet, it clearly appears that the Petitioner has disclosed all such necessary and probable information with respect to the live cartridge found in her hand bag; that she had no nexus or knowledge as to how it came to be planted or found in her bag and one of the reason adduced by the Petitioner would be that it was found by her minor daughter in the vicinity of the police training center and firing range next to her residence in Sangli and may have been picked up and kept in the hand bag. He submits that the Petitioner has never claimed to be inconscious possession of the live cartridge as the Petitioner came to know for the first time about its presence in her hand bag when it got detected during screening; further its presence in the Petitioner's hand bag was not to her knowledge and it was a case of the complete inadvertance and hence the Petitioner's case cannot be covered under the provisions of Sec. 3 and 25 of the said Act; that the Petitioner and her husband are qualified doctors having no criminal antecedents; both did not possess any arms licence for possessing a weapon; the family of the Petitioner had embarked upon a vacation tour and thus on detection