SC Acquits Man In NDPS Case Nearly 11 Yrs After He Was Booked

The Supreme Court has acquitted a man who was charged nearly 11 years ago under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act).

A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih found no evidence linking the man to the alleged plot to transport 30 cartons of Fortwin injections (Pentazocine) without a license.

The Court noted, “There is no recovery from the appellant of any incriminating material. There is no evidence to show that the contraband tried to be transported by accused no.1 by railway parcel was delivered by or on behalf of the appellant to accused no.1. There is no evidence of any conspiracy against the appellant.” The Court concluded that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

The appellant, who ran a medical shop in Patna, was accused of supplying 30 cartons of Pentazocine to a co-accused, who attempted to transport them across state lines. An NDPS case was registered in December 2013, and the appellant, along with others, was convicted by the trial court. The Patna High Court later upheld the conviction, prompting the appellant to challenge it in the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court, however, disagreed with the lower courts, especially on the reliance on the appellant’s statement under Section 67 of the NDPS Act. The Court reiterated that such a statement cannot be used as a confession, as established in the Tofan Singh v. State of Tamil Nadu case.

With no admissible evidence against the appellant, the Court acquitted him, stating, “There is absolutely no legal evidence on record to show that the contraband attempted to be transported by accused no.1 by a railway parcel was supplied to him by the appellant.”

Advocates Vivek Singh, Ritik Dwivedi, Vishal M Sundaramughan, and Abhishek Gupta represented the appellant, while Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, Senior Advocates Sonia Mathur, Rajat Nair, and others appeared for the respondent.

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