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JAMMU & KASHMIR HIGH COURT
R.P. Sethi, J.
Mohd Sadiq -Appellant
versus
State -Respondent
Bail Application No. 147-89
Decided on 29-12-1989
Counsels for the parties:
Mr. M.S. Malik, Advocate- For the Appellant.
Mr. P.R. Sharma, Advocate- For the Respondent.
IMPORTANT POINT
In cases involving the commission of offence under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, the court has to decide the question of grant of bail in the light of consideration, such as, nature and seriousness of the circumstances peculiar to the accused, reasonable apprehension of witnesses being tempered with, the larger interests of the public or the state and to prevent the abuses of drugs trafficking increasing in the country.
Headnote:Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985- Sections 22/23,8/21- Petitioner is alleged to be in possession of heroine - Bail Application- Strict measures have to be followed- Bail refused keeping in view the nature and seriousness of the accusation made against the accused, the character of evidence, circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, apprehension of the witnesses being tampered and lured, larger interests of the society and the state, intention and purpose of the Act and to prevent the abuses of drugs trafficking increasing in the country tests laid down by the Supreme Court in Captain Jagjit Singh, case; A.I.R. 1962 S.C. 253 followed.
Held: The courts, therefore, while dealing with the cases involving the commission of offence under the Act have to adopt the same approach which is required to be adopted for the commission of the heinous crime under the Penal Code. The social status and the position of the accused in the society is not a relevant consideration for granting bail to such accused persons. Rich and the poor whosoever is involved in the commission of offence under the Act has to be dealt alike. Insistence should be to get the case tried and concluded as early as possible lest the trial itself be not strangulated and the evidence destroyed by the accused persons, their allies and friends who are assumed to be influential in the society on account of bette economic resources and the lucrative business of drugs smuggling carried on by them. (Para 4)
Result: Application rejected.
JUDGMENT
R.P. Sethi, J.- The petitioner who is alleged to be guilty for the commission of offences punishable under Sections 22/23, 8/21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (hereinafter called the Act) was arrested on 5-5-1989 by Police Station Kalakote and rust Information Report No. 24/89 registered against him in the Police Station Kalakote. The bail application filed by the petitioner was dismissed by the learned Sessions Judge, Rajouri vide his order dated 26th of September 1989 holding him to be involved for the commission of offence which was termed as potential danger to the society. Aggrieved by the order of learned Sessions Judge, the present petition has been filed in this court for grant of bail pending trial.
2. I have heard the learned Counsels for the parties and have perused the recotd.
3. I have not been disputed by the learned Counsel for the petitioner that his client is alleged to be in possession of heroine, a drug covered by the provisions of the NDPS Act. The punishment provided for the commission of offence under the Act is upto 20 years Rigorous Imprisonment and a fine of not less than one lakh Rupee. It is further provided that the minimum punishment for the commission of such offence shall be ten year.
4. The Act was enacted to check, control and minimise the menace of drugs addiction in the society in general and in the youths in particular. The necessity of enacting legislation with respect to the non-medical use of drugs was felt by the United Nations and its world Health Organisation in view of the alanning situation created all around the world. The deterent punishments were provided for the commission of the offence connected with the non-medical users of the drugs. Accotding to the World Health Organisation, drugs has been defined to mean any substance that when taken into organism may modify one or more of its functions. And drugs abuses as "self administration of drugs for non-medical reasons in quantity and frequency which may impaire an individual's ability without functioning effectively and which may result in social, physical or emotional hann". Eventually the drugs dependence means psychic and sometimes physical, resulting from the entire action between all the living organisim and a drug, characterised by behavourial and other responses which included complusion to take the things on continuous or periodical basis in otder to experience its psychic effects. Out of the drugs used for non-medical purposes, heroine, martine, codoin, methadine, pathadine are narocotic analgesics. It is universlly acknowledged that addiction to heroin is the worst type of addiction because of its eventuall consequences in the form of production of craving tolerance to narcotic which occurs rapidly and making it necessary to take increasing doses of the drugs of achieve the same effect. It was, therefore, reserved that top priority must be given to prevent the further spread of drug abuses for which the various legislations were enacted by different counties of the world. The Act, was enacted to consolidate and amend the law regarding the narcotic drugs to make stringent provisions for the control and regulation of operation relating to Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and for matters connected therewith. The drugs dependence results in harm not only to the individuals, but also to the society resulting in emotional distress, and physical illness if the drug is withheld. Physical dependence results in adaptive changes in body tissues with result that when the drug in withheld, the adaptive changes are left un-opposed resulting generally in a rebound over activities. The continuance non-medical use of medical drugs particularly heroine does not only effect the addict, but ultimately harms the mankind. The lucrative trade in the Narcotic Drugs" if allowed to flourish would result in the whole society being addicted to dangerous drugs. The intention of the law-makers in the form of
