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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU

DATED THIS THE 16^TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2021

BEFORE

THE HON9BLE MRS.JUSTICE M.G. UMA

CRIMINAL PETITION No.1924 OF 2021

BETWEEN:

STATE OF KARNATAKA

REPRESENTED BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE

OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT

COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

ORGANISED CRIME WING

CITY CRIME BRANCH

NT PET, BENGALURU-560 002.

REPRESENTED BY SPECIAL PUBLIC PROSECUTOR

HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA

BENGALURU-560 001.

& PETITIONER

(BY SRI: TIGADI VEERANNA GADIGEPPA, ADVOCATE (PH))

AND:

LOOM PEPPER SAMBA @ SIMON

S/O SAMBA PEPPER

AGED ABOUT 34 YEARS

DARK CITY, SENEGAL

PRESENT ADDRESS: NO.44

GROUND FLOOR, 5^TH MAIN

7^TH CROSS, BALAJI LAYOUT

KOGILU VILLAGE, YALAHANKA

BENGALURU-560 091.

& RESPONDENT

(BY SRI: K.S.VISHWANATH, ADVOCATE (PH))

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THIS CRIMINAL PETITION IS FILED UNDER SECTION

439(2) OF CR.P.C. PRAYING FOR QUASHING/CANCELLING THE

ORDER OF GRANTING BAIL DATED 25.02.2021 TO THE

ACCUSED

NO.7/RESPONDENT

IN

COTTONPET

P.S.,

CR.NO.109/2020 FOR THE OFFENCE PUNISHABLE UNDER

SECTIONS 21, 21(C), 27A, 27B, 29 OF NDPS ACT, AND

SECTION 120B OF IPC IN CRL MISC.NO.1674/2021 BY THE

LEARNED XXXIII

ADDITIONAL

DISTRICT

AND

SESSIONS

JUDGE, BENGALURU.

THIS CRIMINAL PETITION COMING ON FOR ORDERS THIS

DAY, THE COURT PASSED THE FOLLOWING:

O R D E R

The petitioner-State is before this Court seeking

cancellation of bail granted to respondent-accused No.7 in

Crime No.109 of 2020 of Cottonpet Police Station,

registered for the offences punishable under Sections 21,

21(c), 27A, 27B and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and

Psychotropic Substances Act (for short 8NDPS Act9) and

under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code (for short

8IPC9), dated 25.02.2021 passed in Crl.Misc.No.1674 of

2021 by the learned XXXIII Additional City Civil and

Sessions Judge, Bengaluru.

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Heard Sri.Tigadi Veeranna Gadigeppa, learned

counsel for the petitioner and Sri.K S Vishwanatha, learned

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counsel for the respondent. Perused the materials on

record.

3.

Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted

that the petitioner is arrayed as accused No.7. He is a

foreign national. 10 grams of MDMA which is classified as

commercial quantity was seized from his custody. Now

the investigation is completed and the charge sheet is

filed. Section 14 of the Foreigners Act is also invoked

against the present petitioner. The petitioner approached

the

Trial

Court

seeking

grant

of

bail

by

filing

Crl.Misc.No.1674 of 2021 and the same came to be

allowed vide order dated 25.02.2021. The Trial Court has

not considered the fact that the commercial quantity of

MDMA was seized from the custody of the petitioner and

Section 37(1)(b) of the NDPS Act is attracted to the facts

of the case. The Trial Court has ignored the fact that the

petitioner is a foreign national, who is staying in India even

after expiry of his passport and he is to be deported to his

country after conclusion of the trial. The Trial court

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ignoring all these facts and circumstances, relied on the

decision rendered by the Hon9ble Apex Court in Ragini

Dwivedi alias Gini alias Rags Vs State of Karnataka¹,

proceeded to allow the petition ordering to enlarge the

petitioner on bail. The decision in Ragini Dwivedi (supra)

is not at all attracted to the facts of the case. The appellant

therein is arrayed as accused No.2 and no contraband was

recovered at her instance. Under such circumstances, the

Hon9ble Apex Court proceeded to grant bail in her favour,

which is not helpful to the present petitioner. Therefore,

the Trial Court was not right in allowing the petition.

Accordingly, he prays for allowing the petition by setting

aside the order dated 25.02.2021 passed by the Trial

Court granting bail, in the interest of justice. In the

alternate, the learned counsel prays for remanding the

matter to the Trial court after setting aside the impugned

order with a direction to decide the matter afresh.

1 2021 SCC Online SC