Punjab & Haryana HC dismisses bail plea of drugs trafficking accused due to previous conviction in narcotics case

Read Order: SATNAM SINGH v. STATE OF PUNJAB 

 LE Correspondent

Chandigarh, August 5, 2021: The Punjab and Haryana High Court dismissed the bail plea of an accused in a drugs trafficking case, upon finding that he was previously convicted in a similar case. 

This was the accused’s second petition for grant of bail, pending trial, in a criminal case arising from an FIR dated 13.10.2018, registered under Section 22 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act) at Police Station Lambi, District Mukatsar Sahib.

The State counsel brought to the notice of the Court that the petitioner was a previous convict. The first petition filed by the petitioner for grant of bail was dismissed on 07.10.2020 with the information that the petitioner was apprehended with 3,400 intoxicating tablets of Tricare SR100 MG containing salt Tramadol Hydrochloride and 2000 intoxicating tablets of Prozolam 0.5 containing sale Alprazolam. Both the salts are prohibited substances under the NDPS Act. 

A report from the Forensic Science Laboratory was received confirming that the tablets do contain the prohibited substances, the State counsel submitted.

Advocate General, Punjab, had then submitted that in the present case, recovery from the petitioner is heavy and, therefore, in view of the provisions of Section 37 of the NDPS Act, no bail should be granted.

On the other hand, counsel for the petitioner contended that the petitioner was in custody for a period of 2 years and he is not a person with criminal antecedents and he was falsely implicated. 

The High Court then observed that it was undisputed that the recovery from the petitioner falls in the category of commercial quantity. Hence, in view of rigors of Section 37 of the NDPS Act, no ground to grant the concession of bail was made out.

Bhupender Beniwal, AAG, Punjab, submitted that the trial of the case has already commenced, the HC noted.

“Hence, no ground to grant bail to the petitioner is made out,” held the bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal while dismissing the plea.