IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH AT JABALPUR BEFORE HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE DEEPAK KHOT

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ON THE 27 OF APRIL, 2026 WRIT PETITION No. 17529 of 2011 AJAY SINGH Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH AND OTHERS Appearance:

Shri Ajay Gupta - Senior Advocate through Video Conferencing with Shri Rajeev Mishra, learned counsel for the petitioner.

Shri Sumit Raghuwanshi, G.A. for the respondent/State.

Shri Anoop Nair - Senior Advocate with Smt. Divyani Singh - Advocate for the respondent no.2 Airport Authority of India.

Shri Manhar Dixit, Advocate for the respondent No.4.

Shri Shashank Verma - Senior Advocate with Ms. Aditi Shrivastava - Advocate, Shri Shankh Sen Gupta, Advocate - Shri Soham Banerjee and Ms. Nishi Bhankaria - Advocate for the respondent no.5 Company.

ORDER The present petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India has been filed seeking the following reliefs :-

i)That the Hon'ble High Court may kindly be pleased to issue a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents no.2, 3 and 4 to install proper machines for the purposes of detection of such kind of contraband and explosive substances and to deploy trained officials with all supporting equipments like chemical detection test kits, proper training, standard operating manuals/procedures and all other necessary instructions.

(ii) The Hon'ble High Court may further be pleased to direct an enquiry by C.B.I. or any other agency into the affairs of purchase of such ETD machine by Airport Authority of India without analyzing its use and effect in India.

(iii) The Hon'ble High Court may further be pleased to direct the Airport Authority of India to blacklist the said M/s.Smith Detection Asia Pacific PTE Ltd., B-58, Shivalik, Post Office - Malviya Nagar, New Delhi - 110 017 as supplier of such machine. (iv) The Hon'ble High court may further be pleased to direct that stringent action be taken against the erring officers of Regional FSL, Bhopal for having not acted promptly in reporting that they are not equipped to test MDEA samples and, not carrying out the test for heroin sample — for which they had the facility.

(v) The Hon'ble High Court may kindly be pleased to direct the respondents no.1 to 4 to take stringent action against the erring officers involved in the entire episode for acting casually, callously and irresponsibly.

(v) The Hon'ble High court may kindly be pleased to direct the respondents no. 1 to 4 to pay compensation of Rs.10.00 crores to the petitioner as notional compensation for the illegal detention of 57 days in jail due to illegal, irresponsible and casual acts of their responsible officers of respondents and also towards mental agony, humiliation and loss of reputation caused to the petitioner, his parents and family.

(vi) Any other relief which the Hon'ble High Court may deem fit in the facts and circumstances of the case.

2. It is the case of the petitioner that the petitioner who is a businessman by profession, was leaving for Delhi from Bhopal by Jet Airways Flight enroute Malaysia. During routine security checkup at Bhopal Airport, while scanning the baggage and other goods containing packets of branded Aamchur powder and branded Garam Masala powder by ETD machine, it was found that packets of Aamchur powder which were approximately 750 gms. each in weight contained 1-4% heroine and 10% of MDEA (Mytheylene Dioxym N-Ethylamphetamine) respectively. Consequently, the petitioner was arrested on the spot by the CISF, Panchnama was made and packets of Aamchur and Garam Masala were seized and sent to chemical examination. Pursuant thereto, an FIR vide crime No.166/2020 was lodged against the petitioner at Police Station Gandhi Nagar, Bhopal for the offence under section 8/21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance Act, 1881 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). The investigation was conducted and seized packets of powder were sent to Regional Forensic Laboratory, respondent no.6 on 10.5.2010.

3. It is submitted by learned counsel for the