ORAL ORDER

1. Heard learned advocate Ms.Akshitaba Solanki appearing on behalf of the applicant and learned Additional Public Prosecutor Mr. Mr.Trupesh Kathiriya appearing on behalf of the respondent-State.

2. The applicant has filed this application under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for enlarging the applicant on Regular Bail in connection with FIR being CR No.III-2/2022, registered with ATS Police Station, District : Ahmedabad, for the offence punishable under Sections 8(c), 21(c), 23(c), 25 and 29 of the NDPS Act, 1985.

3. Having heard the learned advocate for the respective parties and having perused the documents on record, including the charge sheet papers, which has been supplied by the learned APP, this Court is not inclined to consider this application for the following reasons :

(i) The offence being very serious, inasmuch as the accused were apprehend transacting the contraband heroin, weighing around 56 kilograms.

(ii) It would be pertinent to observe here that the FIR inter alia states about the police ofÏcials receiving secret information in the month of April 2022 as regards a boat from Karachi, Pakistan, coming in the territorial waters of India for supplying a huge quantity of the narcotic - heroin, and whereas, based upon the same, the police ofÏcials had started patrolling the area on the sea around which the boat from Pakistan was supposed to come, and whereas after intercepting the boat, more particularly after having used force to intercept the boat, the same was apprehended and around 56 kilograms of heroin was found in the boat itself.

(iii) It appears that during the course of interrogation, it was revealed that sometimes even before this transaction, some of the accused had delivered around 15 kilograms of the contraband heroin to India, and whereas, the present applicant was named, appears to be one of the persons who had transacted in the contraband in question.

(iv) It would appear that the allegation against the present applicant, being that he had gone along with other co-accused for the purpose of collecting the contraband heroin from the high seas, from a boat which was to originate from Karachi, Pakistan, and whereas, it appears that there are certain witnesses who have given the statements under section 164 of the Cr.P.C., confirming the presence of the present applicant in the entire conspiracy and the role played by the applicant.

(v) It also appears that after the applicant had managed to smuggle the heroin inside the country, he had travelled to Ahmedabad and had sold the heroin in two different quantities, namely 7 kilos and 8 kilos respectively.

(vi) It would also appear that the role of the present applicant is also clearly coming out in the charge sheet,i.e., with regard to having gone on the high seas in a boat to collect the contraband, and whereas, it also appears that the applicant was involved in the later part, i.e., when the contraband was transported to Ahmedabad and sold to the eventual purchasers.

(vii) This court has also noticed that a co-accused, who has a role similar to an identical role, namely one Sultan Habib Lodha, who had also been arrested at about the same time as the present applicant, had preferred an application for regular bail, and whereas, a learned coordinate bench vide an order dated 01.03.2024 in CRMA No. 20310 of 2023, had rejected the said application. It would appear that the said rejection order has not been assailed by the applicant himself.

(viii) It would also appear that the brother of owner of the boat, who had lent the boat to the present applicant and other accused for the purpose of going to the high seas, having not been considered by this court, had approached the Hon’ble Apex Court and vide an order dated 15.12.2024, the Honorable Apex Court having declined to interfere.

(ix) It also appears that based upon the material which was revealed from the persons who were on the Pakistani boat, which had been cau