Point of Law: NDPS Act - Rejection of Bail – Evidence and material on record is not required to be pre-judged and parties can establish their case during trial.

JUDGMENT :

1. Petitioner, who is accused in FIR No. 117/2019, registered at Special Cell, New Delhi for the offences under Sections 21/25/29 of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (henceforth referred to as “NDPS Act”), is seeking bail by this petition. In the alternative, a prayer is made to release him on interim bail for 45 days.

2. The case of the prosecution is that on 17.07.2019, upon receipt of secret information, a raiding team was constituted and after collecting IO bag, field testing kit, electronic weighing machine and official brass seal of "SPL CELL NDR 38", the raiding team headed towards ISBT/Majnu Ka Tila and when they further received secret information that Deepak with his associates will assemble at 12:30 PM under Ashram Flyover, they reached there and tried to join two public witnesses, who refused to join the proceedings due to their own compulsions.

3. At around 12:30 PM two cars bearing registration number DL3C BE 1152 & DL3C AA 8369 came at the place of information, whose drivers came outside and started talking to each other and as the secret informant gave signal, the raiding party apprehended both the drivers. They disclosed their entity as Dheeraj @ Deepak and Rais Khan. Both admitted that they were carrying heroin with them. From the cavity of their cars, contraband of 30 kg. each i.e. total 60 kg. was recovered. Thereafter, the contraband was seized, samples were drawn, marking were done, rukka was prepared, the case property was sent to the Special Cell and samples were sent to FSL for analysis. Both the drivers/accused-Dheeraj @ Deepak and Rais Khan were arrested. Upon disclosure of accused Dheeraj @ Deepak, a search was conducted at House No. 483, Gali No. 21 Zakhir Nagar, Okhla, Delhi on 18.07.2019 and from the said house contraband of 60 kg was recovered and three persons, namely, Vakeel Ahmad @ Rahul, Rhamat Gul Shinwari & Akhtar Mohamad were apprehended and two pistols were also recovered & seized from the said house. In addition, recovery of 30 kg. of contraband was affected from the car of Vakeel Ahmad.

4. On the disclosure of Rehmat Gul Shinwari, two more persons namely Mohammad Akbar (present petitioner) and Neda Mohammad were arrested on 22.7.2019 from JM Cool House Pvt. Ltd, Kondli, Sonepat, Haryana. Both these persons revealed that they were carrying heroin from Afghanistan through Atari border, secretly hidden in card board cartons of dry fruit. This information was conveyed to Sh. Lalit Mohan Negi, ACP/NDR, for compliance of Section 50 of NDPS Act.

5. Thereafter, in the presence of ACP Lalit Mohan Negi, in compliance of Section 50 NDPS Act, accused persons disclosed that contraband is hidden in cartons bearing special mark of "105", filled with Raisin. At their instance, two polythene packets were recovered embedded in discreet manner; between the side layers of the cardboard. On further opening of these recovered packets, it found containing brown substance, in the form of paste. Similarly, all the cartons were checked with the help of staff and a total number of 102 cartons on which "105" were written were found. Each carton was containing two transparent polythene packets, containing suspicious contraband. These cartons were segregated from other raisin boxes and marked. On one-by-one checking of both polythene packets, present in cartons with the help of field-testing kit, it confirmed as "heroin" in each polythene packet, as purple colour appeared with reagents 'A-1' and 'A-2'. After that, two samples of 50 gm each were taken out from both polythene packets and each kept in separate small transparent plastic container and 408 sample pulandas were prepared with the help of doctor's tape and marked. The remaining packet exhibits were also marked (parent bag) containing total heroin weighing 29.15 kg and were kept in a separate plastic container and pulanda. All the exhibits were sealed and the seal was returned after completion of procedural formalities. During searc