Back
MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY, J
AHADUL HUSSAIN – Appellant
Versus
THE STATE OF ASSAM – Respondent
Bail Appln./126/2021|Bail Appln./498/2021|Bail Appln./139/2021|Bail Appln./367/2021|Bail Appln./130/2021|Bail Appln./361/2021|Bail Appln./129/2021|Bail Appln./575/2021
For the Appellants/Petitioners: MR H R A CHOUDHURY
For the Respondents: PP, ASSAM
A person accused under the NDPS Act may be granted bail if there are reasonable grounds to believe in their innocence and no corroborating evidence links them to the crime, as highlighted by statutory provisions.
Headnote:(A) Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 - Sections 21(c) and 29 - Bail application - Accused-petitioners sought bail while in custody related to charges of drug peddling involving commercial quantity of suspected brown sugar. No substantial evidence was presented against the accused-petitioners other than statements from co-accused. The court observed that further detention was unwarranted due to lack of prima facie case. (Paras 1, 9, 27)
(B) Section 37 of the NDPS Act - The power to grant bail in these cases is limited. Conditions under this section must be satisfied for release, which include public prosecutor’s opposition and reasonable grounds for believing in the accused's innocence. The court emphasized strict adherence to statutory provisions regarding the grant of bail. (Paras 14, 15)
Facts of the case:
Eight bail applications filed under Section 439 CrPC by various accused-petitioners arrested in connection with drug trafficking related to Badarpur Police Station Case no. 312/2020 registered for offences under the NDPS Act. Several accused-petitioners were in custody since late 2020, based mainly on implications from one arrested accused without further corroboration.
Findings of Court:
Absence of substantial or tangible evidence linking the accused-petitioners to the alleged crime and due to the elapsed time with no further incriminating materials. Bail granted on specified conditions.
Issues: Whether the accused-petitioners could be granted bail given the serious allegations under the NDPS Act and the sufficiency of evidence regarding their involvement.
Ratio Decidendi: The court determined that the absence of tangible evidence and reliance primarily on co-accused statements did not warrant continued detention as a justification for bail was established.
Result: All accused-petitioners were allowed bail on certain conditions.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. initial case registration and custody details. (Para 1 , 2) |
| 2. consolidation of bail applications for joint hearing. (Para 3 , 4) |
| 3. fir context and evidence collection. (Para 5 , 6) |
| 4. defense arguments and references to bail precedents. (Para 7) |
| 5. prosecution's view on organized crime. (Para 8) |
| 6. court's observations on existing laws relevant to ndps. (Para 9 , 10 , 11) |
| 7. definition and implications of commercial quantity. (Para 12 , 13) |
| 8. legal conditions for granting bail under ndps. (Para 14 , 15 , 16) |
| 9. issues with fsl report on seized drugs. (Para 17 , 18) |
| 10. important case law referenced in decision making. (Para 19 , 20 , 21) |
| 11. analysis of evidence presented against accused. (Para 22 , 23 , 24) |
| 12. court's reasoning on previous bail decisions. (Para 25 , 26) |
| 13. conclusion on granting bail with conditions. (Para 27 , 28) |
| 14. final observations and dismissal of applications. (Para 29 , 30 , 31) |
ORDER
Date : 30-04-2021
By these 8 (eight) nos. of applications filed under Section 439 , Code of Criminal Procedure , 1973 (CrPC), 9 (nine) nos. of accused-petitioners have prayed for their release on bail as they are in custody in connection with Badarpur Police Station Case no. 312/2020 (G.R. Case no. 2170/2020) registered for offences under Sections 21 (c)/29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.
2. The accused-petitioners viz. (i) Ahadul Hussain and (ii) Noor Ahmed in Bail Appln. 126/2021 are in custody since 08.12.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Rahim Uddin in Bail Appln. 130/2021 is in custody since 21.11.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Faruk Ahmed in Bail Appln. 139/2021 is in custody since 12.11.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Shamim Uddin @ Shamim Ahmed in Bail Appln. 129/2021 is in custody since 06.11.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Forid Uddin @ Md. Farid Uddin in Bail Appln. 361/2021 is in custody since 21.11.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Ikbal Bahar @ Ikbal Bahar Khondakar in Bail Appln. 367/2021 is in custody since 29.11.2020. The accused-petitioner viz. Kabir Ahmed in Bail Appln. 498/2021 is in custody since 11.02.2021. The accused-petitioner viz. Jillul Hoque in Bail Appln. 575/2021 is in custody since 14.11.2020.
3. As all these applications have arisen out of the same police case i.e. Badarpur Police Station Case no. 312/2020, the same are taken up together, as agreed to by the learned counsel for the parties.
4. Heard Mr. K.N. Choudhury, learned Senior Counsel for the accused- petitioner in Bail Appln. 498/2021 and Mr. H.R.A. Choudhury, learned Senior Counsel for the accused-petitioners in Bail Appln. 126/2021, Bail Appln. 129/2021, Bail Appln. 575/2021, Bail Appln. 130/2021, Bail Appln. 139/2021, Bail Appln. 361/2021 & Bail Appln. 367/2021.Also heard Mr. N.K. Kalita and Mr. T.K. Mishra, learned Additional Public Prosecutors for the State of Assam.
5. The First Information Report (FIR) was lodged by an Assistant Sub- Inspector of Police (ASI) attached to Badarpur Police Station on 04.11.2020. In the FIR, it has inter-alia been stated that based on a specific information received by the Officer In-Charge, Badarpur Police Station that one Maruti Suzuki Wagon R car bearing registration no. AS-10/E-1339 (white colour) was coming from Silchar side to Karimganj side with huge quantity of drugs, a General Diary Entry being G.D. Entry no. 67 dated 04.11.2020 was registered. Pursuant thereto, the Officer In-Charge, Badarpur Police Station deputed a team of police personnel for special Naka checking in front of Badarpur Police Station on National Highway 37 for checking of vehicles and interception of the said car particularly. Accordingly, the team took position at 10-47 a.m. on 04.11.2020. At around 11-00 a.m., the white colour Maruti Suzuki Wagon R car bearing registration no. AS-10/E-1339 was stopped at the Naka checking when it was found coming from Silchar side towards Karimganj side. The said car was found driven by one Sabbir Ahmed and when questioned, his replie
