Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2023 Supreme(Del) 2007

IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Amit Sharma, J.
Himanshu Singh – Appellant
Versus
State – Respondent
Bail Appln. 2008 of 2022
Decided On : 08-02-2023

Advocates appeared:
Mr. Ramesh Gupta, Senior Advocate with Mr. Ashish Aggarwal, Mr. Shailendra Singh, Mr. Ishaan Jain and Mr. Harsh Chaudhary, Advocates, for the Petitioner.
Ms. Nandita Rao, ASC (Crl.), GNCTD with Mr. Amit Peswano and Mr. Saransh, Advocates with S.I. Satyender Gulia, P.S. Kotla Mubarakpur, for the Respondent.

Presumption of innocence, bail as a means to secure attendance at trial, and the punitive nature of pre-conviction detention.

Headnote:
NDPS Act - Bail Application - Sections 20/29/61/85 of the NDPS Act, 1985 and Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code -
Fact of the Case:

The applicant sought bail in a case under Sections 20/29/61/85 of the NDPS Act and Section 201 of the IPC. The case involved the recovery of charas from a co-accused, implicating the applicant based on disclosure statements and alleged transactions.
Finding of the Court:

The court found that the recovery from the co-accused was of an intermediate quantity, and no recovery was made from the applicant. The court also considered the alleged transactions and WhatsApp chats but emphasized the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
Issues: The issues revolved around the involvement of the applicant based on disclosure statements, alleged transactions, and WhatsApp chats, and the applicability of bail principles.
Ratio Decidendi: The court emphasized the presumption of innocence, the lack of recovery from the applicant, and the need to consider bail based on general principles of law. It also highlighted the punitive nature of pre-conviction detention.
Final Decision: The court granted bail to the applicant, considering his young age, lack of recovery, and the principles of securing attendance at trial without punitive or preventative objectives.

JUDGMENT

Amit Sharma, J.

1. The present application under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure ('CrPC.) filed on behalf of Himanshu Singh, the applicant, seeks grant of regular bail in case FIR No. 171/2022 dated 25.03.2022 under Sections 20/29/61/85 of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 ('NDPS Act.) and Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 ('IPC'), registered at PS Kotla Mubarakpur.

2. Briefly stated, the facts relevant for adjudication of the present application are as under:

i. On 24.03.2022, secret information was received by Sub-Inspector Gajendra Singh posted at PS Kotla Mubarakpur that a person who was stated to be actively involved in peddling drugs would arrive at Kidwai Nagar to deliver a consignment of drugs. Acting upon the said information, a team of police personnel reached Nala Pulia, towards Kidwai Nagar, Near Gurjar Chowk, Kotla Mubarakpur, Delhi. At around 11:20 PM, the team spotted a boy who arrived on a grey scooty bearing registration number DL 3SE0Y 7846. The team apprehended him and served a notice under Section 50 of the NDPS Act upon him.

ii. One brown brick wrapped in brown tape was recovered from the rightside pocket of his trouser. The substance in the said packet was tested with a field testing kit and the same was found to be charas. The substance recovered from him weighed 334 grams.

iii. On enquiry, the person who was apprehended revealed his identity as one Raghav Mandal, aged 23 years and a resident of H. No. 114, Savitri Nagar, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi. Subsequently, the present FIR was registered, initially under Sections 20/61/85 of the NDPS Act and Raghav Mandal was arrested on 25.03.2022.

iv. During the course of investigation, Raghav Mandal disclosed that he knew Himanshu Singh, i.e., the present applicant from the last 7-8 years and that the applicant used to allegedly supply charas in Delhi at the instance of one Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo, who is also a co-accused in the present case. Raghav Mandal further disclosed that the charas which was recovered form him was also allegedly supplied by the applicant for delivery to someone in Kidwai Nagar. He stated that he used to get paid about Rs. 500/- to Rs. 1000/- for every delivery.

v. During search, Raghav Mandal's mobile phone of make MIUI, colour metallic, having SIM No. 9958673379 was also recovered.

vi. Based on Raghav Mandal's disclosure, a raid was conducted at the residence of the applicant but he was not found there. However, after some time, he surrendered before the police and was arrested in the present case on 25.03.2022. At the time of surrender, the applicant also produced his mobile phone of make OnePlus, colour green having two SIM cards bearing numbers 8851795202 and 7703029094. When the said phone was checked, it was allegedly found to have been intentionally formatted by the applicant before his surrender.

vii. During interrogation, the applicant disclosed that Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo was his classmate and he allegedly used to purchase charas and other narcotic substances from online sources and used to sell them at higher rates in Delhi and Noida. It was further disclosed that the applicant also got involved with the said activity with Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo and used to pay him for the charas and other narcotic substances via PayTM or cash. The applicant further stated that his PayTM account is linked with his mobile number 8851795202 and Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo's PayTM account is linked with the mobile number 7982583347.

viii. The applicant also disclosed that Raghav Mandal, who was arrested earlier had also started supplying drugs at his instance only and that the recovered charas was also supplied to the applicant by Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo and the applicant handed it over to Raghav Mandal for delivery.

ix. Based on the applicant's disclosure, a team of police personnel reached the stated address of Lal Vedant Nath Shah Deo - Flat No. 101, First Floor, Tower A, Proview Techno City Ap