Provisions of section 50 of the Act Complied.

2. The above appeals have been preferred against the common judgment of the Special Court under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act hereinafter called as ‘the Act’, Madras in C.C.No.186 of 1994 dated 31.7.1997 convicting A-1 and A-2 under Sec.8(c) read with Sec.21 of the Act and A-2 to A-6 under Sec.8(c) read with Sec.21 and also under Sec.29 of the Act and sentenced them to undergo ten years rigorous imprisonment apart from imposing a fine of Rs.1,00,000 and in default of payment of fine to under rigorous imprisonment for further period of one more year.

3. The case of the prosecution was that on 2.9.1994 around 11.30 a.m., based on intelligence report gathered by P.W.1 to the effect the A-1 residing at Door No.26B Anna Street, Madhavaram, Chennai was in possession of contraband Heroin, that he was attempting to sell the said contraband to others, that after getting necessary permission from his superiors, P.W.1 proceeded along with certain other officials 1o the residence of A-1 and made a surveillance of his residence, that around 3.00 p.m., A-1 to A-3 came out of the residence of A-1 and after meeting A-4 to A-6 near the residence of A1, they proceeded in two autorickshaws, that when A1 came out of his house, he was found to be in possession of a brown colour packet in his hand that when P.W.1 along with his party intercepted the autorickshaws and after introducing themselves to the persons seated in the autorickshaws that they belong to NIB party, and that they wanted to search the accused. It is claimed that for that purpose, they sought the consent of the drivers of the autorickshaws to act as witnesses to the search to be conducted on the accused, that the accused were informed about their right to get themselves examined in the presence of either a Magistrate or a Gazetted Officer, that on the accused expressing their willingness to get themselves searched by P.W.1 himself, when they were enquired the first accused handed over the packet kept in his possession to P.W.1 and informed that the said packet contained Heroin. It is stated that after ascertaining that the powder contained in the said packet was Heroin, when the packet was weighed, it was found that it contained 110 gms. of Heroin, that A-5 handed over American dollars to the value of $1600 from his pant packet that he also informed that he was carrying the American dollars to Egmore with a view to convert the dollars into cash in order to pay a sum of Rs.15,000 towards the value of 110 gms. of Heroin.

4. It is also stated that on further enquiries with A-1 as to whether he was in possession of any more quantities of Heroin, A-1 informed that he was having another 250 ml gms of Heroin in his house for samples and that he also agreed to hand over the said samples. The further case of the prosecution was that necessary Mahazar was prepared by P.W.9, that the contraband from A-1 and the American dollars from A-5 were seized by P.W.1. It is also claimed that in Ex.P-2 mahazar, all the accused, auto drivers, P.W.9 and P.W.1 affixed their signatures. It is further stated that while A-2 to A-6 were taken to the office of the N.I.B., P.W.1 along with A-1, two autorickshaw drivers and other officers proceeded to the house of A1 situated at Door No.26-B, Anna Street, Chennai, that at the residence. A-1 went into his house and brought one German Dictionary wherein a sample packet was concealed which also contained substance in brown colour and when it was tested, it was proved to be Heroin. P.W.1 claimed that the German Dictionary and the Heroin Powder was seized by him under Ex.P-3 Mahazar. It is also claimed that Ex.P-3 Mahazar was also signed by the witnesses as well as A-1. It is the case of the prosecution that the weight of the Heroin contain