Chakradhari Sharan Singh, J.—By the impugned judgment and order dated 27.11.2020, passed by the learned District & Sessions Judge- cum-Special Judge, NDPS Act, West Champaran, Bettiah in connection with Trial No. 15/2018/ CIS No. 20/2018, arising out of Bhangaha P.S. Case No. 04/2018, the appellant has been convicted and sentenced as under:

2. A written report addressed to the Officer-in-Charge of Bhangaha Police Station dated 13.01.2018 by the Assistant Commandant, "A" Coy, 44 BN SSB (Sashastra Seema Bal) is the basis for the registration of the concerned Bhangaha P.S. Case No. 4/2018 for the offences punishable under Sections 20, 22, 23 and 28 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (the Act in short). According to the written report, the informant (P.W. 5) received a confidential information at about 6:00 P.M. on 12.01.2018 to the effect that a person was likely to cross Nepal border in a red Bajaj CT 100 motorcycle with contraband articles, at about 9:00 P.M. and that he would be going to Narkatiyaganj. The secret information so received was communicated to the Commandant of SSB who directed the informant to constitute a raiding team to intercept the said person. Accordingly, equipped with drug detection kit, weighing machine, sampling materials, and packaging materials, the informant reached the indicated place at about 8:15 P.M. with other members of the raiding team. In the meanwhile, two persons namely, Lal Babu Sah @ Lal Babu Jaiswal (P.W. 7) and Akhilesh Yadav (not examined) were seen crossing the place who were requested by the raiding team to co-operate in the search operation. They acceded to the request. At about 9:30 P.M. the appellant was seen coming in the motorcycle and was intercepted. An information in this regard was given immediately to Rajiv Kumar, Assistant Commandant (not examined) who also came and in his presence and in the presence of independent witnesses search of the members of the raiding team was firstly allowed to be conducted and thereafter, on a consent given by the appellant to be searched, his personal search was conducted leading to recovery of three packets from the inner pocket of his jacket which he was wearing and two packets tied with his belt and 15 packets of contraband articles from the vehicle. Total weight of the stuff so seized was found on weighment, to be 10 Kg. With the aid of drug detection kit the substance was, prima facie, found to be charas. The appellant also disclosed that the stuff was charas. Two samples were, thereafter, drawn, 25 gm each which were sealed and rest of the articles so seized were duly packaged. The appellant, accepting the stuff to be charas disclosed to the raiding team that he had taken them from one Shakil Ahmad which he was required to hand over to one Suresh of a place named Lauriya. It further transpires from the written report that the appellant was arrested and he was forwarded to the Officer-in-Charge of the nearest police station with the seized articles, the seizure-list, the arrest Memo and one sample of the seized article. After registration of the FIR, the investigation was handed over to Navin Sharma (P.W. 6).

3. We notice, at this juncture, the prosecution's case that the sample was sent for forensic examination which was received in the Office of the Director, Forensic Science Laboratory, Bihar, Patna on 17.07.2018. It transpires from the ordersheet maintained by the learned Sessions Judge that the Investigating Officer had made an application on 05.02.2018 to depute a Magistrate to seal the seized materials for sending it to the F