2026:CGHC:19251 Digitally signed by RAVVA UTTEJ KUMAR RAJU NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR CRA No. 435 of 2020

1 - Parmesh Nayak S/o Shankar Nayak, aged about 27 years, R/o Malkangiri, D.N.K. Colony, Police Station Malkangiri, District Malkangiri, Odisha.

2 - Mahesh Nag S/o Vijay Kumar Nag, aged about 32 years, R/o Kindwada, Police Station Pushapal, District Sukma (C.G.)

...Appellants versus State of Chhattisgarh, through Police Station Farasgaon, District Kondagaon (C.G.)

... Respondent/State ____________________________________________________________

For Appellants: Mr. R.K. Jain along with Ms. Kiran Jain, Advocate For State : Mr. Siddhant Tiwari, PL Hon'ble Smt Justice Rajani Dubey J.

Judgment on Board

27.04.2026

1. This criminal appeal under Section 374(2) of the CrPC is directed against the impugned judgment and order of sentence dated 15.01.2020 passed by the learned Special Judge of N.D.P.S. Act, 1985, Kondagaon, District- Kondagaon (C.G.) in Special N.D.P.S. Case No.

02/2018 whereby and whereunder, the appellants have been held guilty of commission of offence and sentenced as described below:-

Conviction Sentence Under Section 20 (b) (ii) (C) R.I. for 10 years each, to pay a of NDPS Act, 1985 fine of Rs. 1,00,000/- each and in default of payment of fine, to undergo additional R.I. for 01 year each.

2. The case of the prosecution in brief is that on 12.08.2017 at about 5:30 pm in- charge officer of Police Station- Farasgaon, Sub-Inspector- Ajay Jha along with staff and witnesses was discharging his official duty and he received the secret information from an informer that two persons were transporting narcotic substance ganja in Bolero Pickup bearing Registration No. MP 18- JA-0152, which is coming from Malkanagiri to Jagdalpur via Farasgaon and going towards Raipur for selling the same. The aforementioned information was recorded in the Rojnamcha Sanha and on receiving the information, the witnesses namely Manoj Netam and Mankuram were made about the secret information and a panchanama to this effect was prepared and a copy of it was sent to Sub-Divisional Officer Police, Farasgaon through Constable Salim Tigga. Since the persons transporting the narcotic substance ganja were in a Bolero pickup vehicle, if they had waited for a search warrant or for the arrival of a gazetted officer, they could have fled and hidden the drugs. Therefore, a Panchnama was prepared under Section 42(2) of the NDPS Act for not being able to obtain a search warrant. Investigating officer- Ajay Jha along with staff Assistant Sub-Inspector B.P. Yadav, PR Purushottam Sonwani, Asman Markam, Panchuram Markam, R Vikas Dugga, Sunil and witnesses, along with the investigation kit, cordoned off the NH- 30 road in front of police Station- Farasgaon. After some time, at around 8 a.m, vehicle Bearing Registration No. MP 18 JA-0152 was seen coming from Kondagaon towards Farasgaon, which was cordoned off and caught. On questioning the occupants of the vehicle, the person sitting in the driver's seat disclosed his name as Parmesh Nayak and the person sitting next to him disclosed his name as Mahesh Nag. The Investigating Officer issued a notice to the accused under Section 50 of the NDPS Act, informing them of their legal rights and asking them to have their vehicle searched by themselves or by a gazetted officer. The accused then gave written consent to have their search conducted by the investigating officer. The investigating officer then had the accused search himself, his accompanying staff, and witnesses. No narcotics were found from their possession. A panchnama (inspection report) was prepared for the investigation. A search of the accused and the Bolero pickup vehicle in their possession was conducted. 40 packets of contraband substance like ganja, both large and small, wrapped in white plastic paper and sealed with cellophane tape, were recovered in the presence of witnesses and a panchnama was prepared. A single bud of contraband article ganj