IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Date of decision: 15.09.2025 Baldev Singh .... Petitioner V/s State of Punjab ...Respondent CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE JASJIT SINGH BEDI Present: Mr. A.P.S. Sandhu, Advocate, and Mr. Ashish Kaushik, Advocate, for the petitioner.

Mr. M.S. Toor, AAG, Punjab.

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JASJIT SINGH BEDI, J. (Oral)

The prayer in the present petition under Section 483 of BNSS is for the grant of regular bail to the petitioner in case FIR No.164 dated 05.07.2024 under Sections 18/25/29 of the NDPS Act, 1985, registered at Police Station Gharinda, Amritsar.

2. The brief facts of the case are that the petitioner-Baldev Singh and a co-accused/Sajanbir Singh were apprehended with 02 kgs. 528 grams of opium.

3. The learned counsel for the petitioner contends that there is a violation of the mandatory provisions of the Act regarding the search and seizure. No independent witness of recovery was joined during the course of the recovery proceedings. Since the recovery of 02 kgs. 528 grams of opium is marginally above the commercial quantity of 02 kgs. 500 grams, the petitioner is a first-time offender, in custody since 05.07.2024 and none of the 10 prosecution witnesse