The court emphasized that pre-arrest bail is not granted as a matter of course and requires special circumstances, weighing seriousness of charges and stage of investigation.

ORDER This application is filed under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita , 2023 (for short, BNSS ), seeking pre-

arrest bail.

2. The applicant is the accused No.5 in Crime No.900/2025 of Kallambalam Police Station, Thiruvananthapuram District. The offences alleged are punishable under Sections 22 (c) 23(c) and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act , 1985 (for short the NDPS Act)

3. The prosecution case, in short, is that pursuant to the conspiracy hatched between the accused to gain illegally by selling psychotropic substances, the applicant along with her minor children travelled to Oman where the accused No.1, the husband of the applicant is working. The applicant along with the children and accused No.1 returned to India on 09.07.2025. It is alleged that the accused No.1 brought 1.235 kgs of MDMA under the guise of bringing dates. It is further alleged that the applicant along with the children and accused Nos. 1 and 2 travelled in a car to their house. The respondents 2 and 3 seized the contraband and registered Crime No.900/2025 of Kallambalam Police Station under Sections 22 (c) and 29 of the NDPS Act and arrested the accused Nos.1 to 4 on 09.07.2025 at about 8.30 PM.

4. I have heard Sri. Latheesh Sebastian, the learned counsel for the applicant and Smt. Sreeja V, the learned Senior Public Prosecutor. Perused the case diary.

5. The learned counsel for the applicant submitted that the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case. The counsel further submitted that no materials are on record to connect the applicant with the alleged crime; hence, she is entitled to bail. The learned Senior Public Prosecutor, on the other hand, submitted that the alleged incident occurred as part of the applicant's intentional criminal acts, and if she is released on bail at this stage, it will affect the course of the investigation.

6. The law regarding the grant or refusal of pre-

arrest bail is well settled. Pre-arrest bail cannot be granted as a matter of course. The power under Section 482 of BNSS could be exercised only when a special case is made out, that too, recording reasons thereof. Perusal of the case diary reveals that the accusation made against the applicant is very serious in nature, and it prima facie shows a premeditated criminal act on her part. The husband of the applicant is the accused No.1. The materials placed on record including the CCTV footage would reveal the involvement of the applicant in the crime. The respondent has sought for the custody of the applicant for the purpose of conducting further investigation in depth.

7. The investigation is in a preliminary stage. The custodial interrogation of the applicant is necessary for the investigation. As rightly argued by the learned Senior Public Prosecutor, the possibility of the applicant influencing the witnesses and interfering with the investigation cannot be ruled out if she is released on bail. Considering the gravity of the offence and stage of the investigation, I am of the view that this is not a fit case where the extraordinary jurisdiction vested with this Court under Section 482 of BNSS could be invoked.

The bail application is, accordingly, dismissed.

Sd/-