The prosecution must establish exclusive and conscious possession of contraband, and non-compliance with mandatory provisions of the Act can lead to acquittal.

P. K. PATRA, J.

( 1 ) THIS appeal is preferred against the judgment dated 14-10-1993 passed by Shri B. Khadenga, Sessions Judge, Sambalpur in S. T. No. 126/93 convicting the appellant under Section 20 (b) (i) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short 'the Act') and sentencing him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for four years and to pay a fine of Rs. 10,000/-, in default, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a further period of another two years.

( 2 ) BRIEFLY stated the prosecution case runs as follows :on 12-2-1993 the Sub-Inspector of Excise, Belpahar (P. W. 4) was performing patrol duty with two Excise constables from Belpahar to Gumadera and getting reliable information that a person was moving with a green cycle having contraband ganja in a brown colour bag, he reached the Gumadera Weekly Market at 4. 25 p. m. and found the appellant moving towards the Weekly market riding a green model 'avon' cycle (M. O. III) and a brown colour bag (M. O. I.) was hanging on the handle of the cycle. Entertaining doubt, he detained the appellant and called two independent witnesses and disclosed the purpose of suspicion and wanted to take personal search of the appellant and the appellant when asked to exercise his option to be searched in presence of an Executive Magistrate or a Gazetted Officer, consented to be searched by P. W. 4 himself. Accordingly, P. W. 4 searched the person of the appellant and nothing could be recovered from his person, but the bag was containing 110 grams of ganja and the appellant could not show any authority to carry the same. Hence P. W. 4 seized the same and took out two samples each weighing 25 grams and sealed the two seized sample packets and the remaining quantity of 60 grams of ganja kept in another packet by affixing paper slips and using his personal seal for the purpose. M. O. IV is one of the two sample packets. The cycle of the appellant was also seized along with the ganja under the seizure list Ext. 1. When the appellant was further interrogated, he disclosed that he had kept some quantity of ganja in his rented house belonging to one Judhistir Seth of village Andhapara. Then the appellant was taken to the Excise office at Belpahar and was detained there during the night, since there was no time to proceed to village Andhapara. On the next morning (14-2-93) P. W. 4 accompanied by the accused and two independent witnesses, reached the village Andhapara at 7. 45 p. m. and the rented room which was in occupation of the appellant was opened by the appellant himself and during search of that room 600 grams of ganja was recovered from a bag (M. O. II ). In the same process two samples, each weighing 25 grams; were drawn up. M. O. V is one of these two sample packets drawn up from 600 grams of ganja which was seized under the seizure list Ext. 2. The packets were sealed affixing paper slips and using the seal of P. W. 4. Thereafter the appellant was taken to Belpahar and in the afternoon he was produced before the S. D. J. M. , Jharsuguda along with the seized materials and the appellant was remanded to jail custody. Since it was a holiday, the S. D. J. M. returned the seized materials with direction to produce the same on the next working day andon the next working day the said materials were produced in Court and two sample packets were sent for chemical examination on 19-2-93. P. W. 4 brought the fact of search, seizure and arrest to the notice of his immediate official superior. After receiving the chemical examination report (Ext. 7) confirming that the samples were ganja (Cannabis) as defined under Section 2 (iii) (b) of the Act, P. W. 4 submitted prosecution report against the appellant who stood his trial.

( 3 ) THE defence plea is one of denial and false implication. According to the accused the seized cycle had been left on the spot by an unknown culprit and it did not belong to him; but on suspicion he was called to the spot and his signatures were taken on b