Bail granted due to procedural irregularities in seizure and jurisdictional lack, emphasizing the importance of evidence integrity and precedent in similar cases.

Order :

FARJAND ALI, J.

1. The jurisdiction of this Court has been invoked by way of filing an application under Section 439 Cr.P.C. at the instance of accused-petitioner. The requisite details of the matter are tabulated herein below:

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. Contrary to the submissions of learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Public Prosecutor opposes the bail application and submits that the present case is not fit for enlargement of accused on bail.

4. I have considered the submissions made by both the parties and have perused the material available on record.

5. Co-accused Rajkumar has already been enlarged on bail by this Court vide order dated 14.10.2025 in S.B. Criminal Miscellaneous II Bail Application No.6120/2025. For ready reference, the relevant portion of the said bail application is reproduced hereinunder:-

2. The brief factual matrix of the case reveals that on 08.07.2023, pursuant to reliable and actionable intelligence regarding the illicit possession and trafficking of opium, Shri T.M. Kathed, Superintendent (Preventive), Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN), Chittorgarh, constituted a specialized preventive squad. This contingent, led by Sub-Inspector Shakeel Ahmad Khan, along with other CBN officials and independent witnesses, strategically positioned themselves at the Bhilwara-Kota highway near Sawai Pur-Kudi at approximately 12:30 PM with the objective of intercepting the suspected contraband.

2.1. The team duly informed the independent witnesses about the impending operation, adhering to the protocol delineated in CBN Form-1, and secured their verbal consent prior to initiating the search. At approximately 1:15 PM, a suspicious silver Hyundai Creta bearing registration number RJ-06-CE-5748, approaching from the Bigod direction, was intercepted. The vehicle was driven by the accused, Rajkumar, with co-accused Rajaram occupying the passenger seat.

2.2. Following a lawful and systematic search conducted in the presence of witnesses, three plastic sacks containing a cumulative quantity of five kilograms of contraband opium, inclusive of packaging materials, were seized. Consequent to the recovery, a formal prosecution complaint has been registered against the principal accused, Rajkumar, under Sections 8 and 18 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The petitioner’s initial bail application, registered as SBCRLMB No.14278/2024, was dismissed as withdrawn by this Court vide order dated 19.11.2024. The instant bail application has therefore been filed.

3. 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.

4. Contrary to the submissions of learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Special Public Prosecutor opposes the bail application and submits that the present case is not fit for enlargement of accused on bail.

5. I have considered the submissions made by the parties and have perused the material available on record.

6. The present matter involves a search and seizure operation undertaken by the Central Bureau of Narcotics, District Chi