The main legal point established in the judgment is the balancing of factors and legal principles related to bail, with a focus on securing the appearance of the accused at trial and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.

JUDGMENT

Sandeep Sharma, J. - Bail petitioner-Kartik Sharma, who is behind the bars since 14.4.2021, has approached this Court by way of instant petition filed under S.439 CrPC, for grant of regular bail in FIR No. 76, dated 14.4.2021, under S.21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Drugs Act, registered at Police Station Boileauganj, District Shimla, Himachal Pradesh.

2. Pursuant to order dated 16.7.2021, respondent-State has filed status report, perusal whereof reveals that on 14.4.2021, police stopped one private bus bearing registration No. HP-62B-0829 for checking. Since person sitting on Seat No. 37, i.e. present petitioner was unable to disclose reason for traevlling in the bus from Solan to Shimla, police deemed it necessary to cause search of his person as well as bag carried by him. Allegedly, the police in the presence of independent witnesses checked the bag being carried by the bail petitioner and recovered 11.21 gram chitta/heroin alongwith one spoon and syringe. Petitioner disclosed to the police that he is a drug addict and as such, he has bought aforesaid quantity of contraband from some auto driver in Chandigarh but he was unable to disclose the number of the auto rikshaw. In the aforesaid background, FIR detailed herein came to be lodged against the present bail petitioner and since then he is behind the bars. Since challan stands filed in the competent court of law and nothing remains to be recovered from the bail petitioner, he has approached this Court by way of instant proceedings, for grant of regular bail.

3. Mr. Sudhir Bhatnagar, learned Additional Advocate General, while fairly admitting the factum with regard to filing of challan in the court of law, submits that though nothing remains to be recovered from the bail petitioner but keeping in view the past antecedents/credentials of the accused, he does not deserve any leniency, as such, his prayer for grant of bail deserves outright rejection. He further contends that on 16.3.2021, small quantity of heroin came to be recovered from the bail petitioner and challan stands filed in the competent court of law but yet the bail petitioner has not mended his ways and has again indulged in similar illegal activities and as such, he does not deserve to be enlarged on bail.

4. Having heard learned counsel appearing for the parties and perused material available on record, this Court finds that on 14.4.2021, 11.21 gram of heroin /chitta came to be recovered from the conscious possession of the bail petitioner that too in the presence of the independent witnesses, and as such, it can not be said that he has been falsely implicated in the case. Record further reveals that on 16.3.2021 small quantity of heroin/charas was recovered from conscious possession of bail petitioner but he, within one month of registration of case on 16.3.2021, has again indulged in illegal activities as such, he does not deserve any leniency. However, having taken note of the fact that petitioner is 19 years old and he has become drug addict coupled with the fact that there is none to take care of his ailing mother, prayer made on behalf of the petitioner deserves to be considered. Since, there is no material available on record suggestive of fact that bail petitioner had been indulging in the illegal trade of narcotics, this Court is of the view that bail petitioner requires to be taken to rehabilitation center at first opportunity so that he is brought back to mainstream without any delay. Learned counsel representing the petitioner informed this Court that the mother of the petitioner had taken the bail petitioner to rehabilitation in the past, but before he could be fully cured/rehabilitated, he again purchased narcotic substance for his own consumption. It also emerges from the pleadings adduced on record that bail petitioner resides with his mother, who though is a Government employee, but not keeping well on account of paralytic attack suffered by her.

5. True it is, that one month p