The court emphasized that mere confessions without corroborative evidence do not justify detention under the NDPS Act, upholding the presumption of innocence.

Order :

KULDEEP MATHUR, J.

1. This application for bail under Section 483 BNSS has been filed by the petitioner who has been arrested in connection with F.I.R. No.77/2022 registered at Police Station Chhatargarh, District Bikaner for offences under Sections 8/15 & 29 of NDPS Act.

2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned Public Prosecutor. Perused the material available on record.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that co-accused Poonam Chand @ Prakash Chand has already been enlarged on bail by a co-ordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 30.08.2024 passed in Criminal Misc. 2^nd Bail Application No.6710/2024. Learned counsel for the petitioner further submitted that the case of present petitioner is not distinguishable from that of co-accused Poonam Chand @ Prakash Chand, who has already been enlarged on bail. The petitioner is in judicial custody and the trial of the case will take sufficiently long time, therefore, the benefit of bail should be granted to the accused-petitioner.

4. Per Contra, learned Public Prosecutor has opposed the bail application and submitted that looking to the seriousness of allegations levelled against the present petitioner, he does not deserve to be enlarged on bail. However, he was not in a position to refute the fact that co-accused has already been enlarged on bail by this Court.

5. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the order dated 30.08.2024 passed by the co-ordinate Bench of this Court. The operative portion order dated 30.08.2024 is reproduced hereinbelow for ready reference:-

“2. It is contended on behalf of the accused-petitioner that no case for the alleged offences is made out against him and his incarceration is not warranted. There are no factors at play in the case at hand that may work against grant of bail to the accused-petitioner and he has been made an accused based on conjectures and surmises.

3. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor as well as gone through the record of the case.

4. Bereft of elaborate details, briefly stated the facts of the case are germane for disposal of the instant bail application would be that the police team of Chhatargarh, District Bikaner made an interception of a vehicle on 11.06.2022 in which two persons namely, Vishna Ram and Shiv Pratap were sitting. Looking to their suspicious activities when due process was adopted in accordance with the mandate of NDPS Act, search of the vehicle was affected and around 160 kilogram poppy husk came to be recovered from their possession. After search and seizure when initially they were negated, it was disclosed that the vehicle belonged to one Rauf Khan and they procured the contraband from the petitioner. The two accused persons named above were detained and after usual investigation, they were arrested. During the course of the investigation, the petitioner was apprehended for the charge that he either abetted or conspired together with the aforementioned two accused persons for procurement of the contraband. After investigation, charge-sheet has been filed, charges have been framed and some of the prosecution witnesses have been examined. The co-accused Vikram @ Vikas @ Chhutia has been granted bail by this Court vide order dated 14.12.2023 in S.B. Criminal Misc. Bail Application No.10899/2023.

5. After going through the entire material as made available to this Court, more particularly, the statement of prosecution witness No.2 - Vinod Kumar who has been examined in the trial as an Investigating Officer; it transpired that there is a substance in the defence plea that no legally admissible evidence is available on record so as to @@ his further incarceration. Admittedly, the petitioner was not present when the contraband was recovered from two persons, namely, Vishna Ram and Shiv Pratap. Nothing has been recovered from the petitioner. He is not the owner and occupier of the vehicle in which the contraband was transported. He has been