No evidence of charas addiction, Delhi HC grants bail to man

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has granted bail to a man who was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for commission of offence punishable under Sections 8(c), 20 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.

Justice Vibhu Bakhru observed,

“Although the prosecution’s case is premised on the basis that the petitioner is a charas addict and that is a reason that he had engaged in the business of trafficking of drugs, there is no medical evidence on record to establish that the petitioner is a drug addict.”

“Considering the above, this Court is of the view that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the petitioner may be acquitted. Admittedly, the petitioner is not involved in any other criminal case and there is no reason to believe that he would commit a similar offence, if released. It appears to be the prosecution’s case that the petitioner had begun dealing in drugs to feed his addiction. But, as noticed earlier, there is nothing on record to establish that the petitioner is a drug addict,” noted by the Court in its order.

The Court allowed bail application on the condition of furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs. 25,000/ and a surety of the like amount. The Court has imposed certain other conditions mentioned below:

• “The petitioner shall provide a contact number and ensure that he is reachable on it all times.
• The petitioner shall mark his presence before the concerned SHO of the local police station where he resides on first Monday of each calendar month.
• The petitioner shall telephonically report to the concerned IO on the first Monday of each calendar month and disclose his whereabouts.
• The petitioner shall ensure that he is available in all proceedings before the concerned court.
• The petitioner shall not try to contact any of the person named in his disclosure statement either directly or indirectly.”

The Court has clarified that,

“the observations made in the order are only prima facie and solely for the purposes of examining whether the petitioner ought to be released on bail. The Trial Court shall consider the complaint and evaluate the evidence uninfluenced by any observations or findings in the order.”

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The Courts decision came on an appeal filed by a man who was arrested for his involvement in the drug trafficking case. The petitioner ‘Jay Haresh Somaiya’ allegedly used to traffic drugs from Himachal Pradesh to other parts of the country through other persons who were involved in the case. It was the prosecution’s case that they arrested three persons from the Nizamuddin Railway Station in possession of the 6.2 kg of Charas which was linked to the petitioner. 

Read the order here;

-India Legal Bureau