IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK

CRLA No.126 of 2015

From the judgment and order dated 12.02.2015 passed by the

Additional Sessions Judge -cum- Special Judge, Phulbani in G.R.

Case No. 07 of 2013.

_____________

Amresh Chandra Barik

….

Appellant

M/s. Anirudha Das, S.K. Mishra, A.

Das, S.K. Rout, Abanindra Das, S.Ch.

Mishra, D. Mishra, Advocates

-versus-

State of Odisha

….

Respondent

Mr. Arupananda Das,

Additional Government Advocate

CRLA No. 161 of 2015

Premananda Sahu

….

Appellant

M/s. Subrat Kumar Das, Pradeep

Kumar

Das

&

Debasis

Sahoo,

Advocates

-versus-

State of Odisha

….

Respondent

Mr. Arupananda Das,

Additional Government Advocate

CORAM:

JUSTICE S.K. SAHOO

Date of Hearing : 25.03.2021 Date of Judgment: 05.04.2021

The appellant Amresh Chandra Barik in CRLA No. 126 of

2015 and appellant Premananda Sahu in CRLA No.161 of 2015 faced

// 2 //

Page 2 of 27

trial in the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge -cum- Special

Judge, Phulbani in G.R. Case No. 07 of 2013 for offence punishable

under section 20(b)(ii)(C) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic

Substances Act, 1985 (hereafter ‘N.D.P.S. Act’) on the accusation that

on 26.09.2013 at about 9.35 a.m., they were found to be in unlawful

possession of 32 kgs. 550 grams and 34 kgs. 600 grams of

contraband ganja respectively near Surkapata Ghat road at village

Majhipada on Phiringia Gochhapada road.

The learned trial Court vide impugned judgment and order

dated 12.02.2015 found both the appellants guilty of the offence

charged

and

sentenced

each

of

them

to

undergo

rigorous

imprisonment for a period of ten years and to pay a fine of

Rs.1,00,000/- (rupees one lakh), in default, to undergo further

rigorous imprisonment for period of one year.

Since both the appeals arise out of one common

judgment, with the consent of learned counsel for both the parties,

those were heard analogously and are disposed of by this common

judgment.

2.

The prosecution case, in short, is that on 26.09.2013 at

about 9.35 a.m. Madan Mohan Pradhan (P.W.4), Inspector in charge

of Phiringia police station got information from reliable sources that

the appellants were in possession of huge quantity of ganja i.e.

flowering and fruiting tops of cannabis plants and were standing near

// 3 //

Page 3 of 27

Surkapata

Ghat

on

Phiringia

Gochhapada

road

waiting

for

transportation of ganja. As it was not possible to obtain a search

warrant, P.W.4 arranged a raiding party comprising of the P.S. staff

with a view to proceed to the spot for detection of the offence. He

also informed Mr. Pravat Chandra Panigrahi (P.W.12), S.D.P.O.,

Sadar, Phulbani over telephone about the proposal to conduct raid

and entered the ground of belief in the Station Diary vide Entry No.

450 dated 26.09.2013. Copies of the ground of belief along with

extract of Station Diary Entry were sent to S.D.P.O., Sadar, Phulbani

as well as Superintendent of Police, Kandhamal. P.W.4 along with the

raiding party members thereafter proceeded to the spot in a police

jeep and on arrival at the spot, they found two persons were standing

by the road side with some plastic and gunny packets. On seeing the

arrival of the police team, those two persons started running, but they

were apprehended soon. On query, those persons disclosed their

names as Amresh Chandra Barik (appellant in CRLA No. 126 of 2015)

and Premananda Sahu (appellant in CRLA No. 161 of 2015) and

admitted to have kept ganja inside the plastic and gunny packets and

waiting for transportation of the same. The appellants denied to have

got any license or authority in support of possession of ganja. After

observing the formalities under section 50 of the N.D