Personal liberty is a fundamental right that should only be curtailed when necessary, and bail should secure attendance at trial, not serve punitive purposes.

JUDGMENT :

Bipin Chander Negi, J.

The present bail petition has been filed under Section483 of the BNSS for grant of regular bail, in FIR No.187 of 2024, dated 08.08.2024, registered at Police Station Bhunter District Kullu, H.P. under Sections 21 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.

2. Status report filed, the same is taken on record. Copy whereof supplied to learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner.

3. I have heard learned counsel for the parties. Perused the record and the status report.

4. On 08.08.2024, a police party led by ASI Netar Singh was on patrol duty. At about 2.00 P.M., ASI Netar Singh received a secret information that one individual named Parvesh belonging to Ludhiana (Punjab) has brought huge quantity of heroin from Punjab and is staying in the house of Khem Raj.

5. As per the secret information received, Khem Raj and the present bail petitioner had come to purchase heroin. In the aforesaid circumstances as per the secret information received, if the rented premises of Parvesh was to be raided immediately, then huge cache of heroin could be recovered.

6. The aforesaid secret information was found to be well founded. The same was reduced into writing. Copy whereof was sent to higher officials. Independent witnesses were associated by the investigating officer. The independent witnesses were one lady named Sita Devi and an individual named Abhishek Kumar.

7. Subsequent thereto, the police went to the premises, wherein Parvesh was residing at Sharabai. The ASI knocked at the door, one Khem Raj opened the door. Two individuals namely Parvesh and the bail petitioner were found inside the room. Investigating Officer gave his personal search to the occupants of the room and informed them of the secret information received. In the room on the double bed, an electronic weighing machine was found with one pebble shaped substance in a plastic pouch. The pebble weighed 107 grams and was found to be heroin. The same was taken into possession and thereafter the bail petitioner alongwith two other individuals namely Khem Raj and Parvesh were taken into custody.

8. Investigation in the case at hand is complete. Challan in the case at hand stands presented before the trial court. The matter is now listed in the month of February for consideration of charge. The other accused have been enlarged on bail. No recovery is to be made from the bail petitioner. Custodial interrogation of the present bail petitioner is not required in the case at hand. No fruitful purpose shall be served by keeping the bail petitioner in custody.

9. The consequences of pre-trial incarceration are grave. A person presumed innocent is subjected to psychological and physical deprivations of jail. Guilt of the individual is to be determined at the trial. Further, a jailed individual is prevented from contributing to the preparation of his defence. The burden of his detention falls heavily on the innocent members of his family.

10. Personal liberty is a very precious fundamental right. The same is to be curtailed only when it becomes imperative, according to the peculiar facts and circumstances of each case. The object of bail is to secure the attendance of the accused person at his trial by reasonable amount of bail. The object of bail is neither punitive nor preventative.

11. Nothing unfavourable has been stated in the status report qua the social circumstances of the petitioner whereby it can be made out that the petitioner is likely to betray the confidence, that the Court may place in him to turn out to take justice at the hands of the Court.

12. Hence, after going through the material available on record and considering the overall facts and circumstances of the case, this Court finds that the present is a fit case where judicial discretion to admit the petitioner on bail is required to be exercised in his favour. Accordingly, the bail application is allowed and it is ordered that the petitioner, who has been arrested by the