Over two years after a 23-year-old youth was caught with banned injections, a special court has sentenced him to 10-year rigorous imprisonment.
Dildar Khan, a resident of Saini Wala Mohalla, Banur, Mohali, was convicted under Section 22 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The court also imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on him.
According to the case files, on June 19, 2020, Khan was spotted by a patrolling party near the beat box of Sector 56 while the Covid lockdown was in effect around 11.05 pm.
He was coming from Sector 39-40 on foot and walking towards Sector 55-56. On spotting the police team, he sped up his gait in an attempt to flee. As the cops apprehended him, he tried to throw away a polythene bag that he was holding. Upon searching the bag, police recovered 12 vials of buprenorphine and 10 vials of pheniramine maleate (not covered under the NDPS Act).
The buprenorphine in the 12 injections was 24.3 gm, which is a commercial quantity (above 20 gm).
As such, a case under the NDPS Act was registered at the Sector 39 police station and the accused was also charged under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for roaming outside during the Covid lockdown. The accused claimed he was not guilty and opted for trial.
During the trial, the prosecution examined seven witnesses, including the first investigation officer, the complainant in the FIR and the additional SHO of the Sector-39 police station. No private witness could join the investigation, as the lockdown was in effect.
{{/usCountry}}During the trial, the prosecution examined seven witnesses, including the first investigation officer, the complainant in the FIR and the additional SHO of the Sector-39 police station. No private witness could join the investigation, as the lockdown was in effect.
{{/usCountry}}Was arrested from home, not outside: Accused
Claiming innocence, the accused said he was arrested from his house and not from outside. He also claimed that nothing was recovered from him.
The defence counsel further argued that the incident took place around 11 pm and it was improbable that someone would approach the police when the lockdown was in effect.
Before the quantum of sentence was pronounced, the accused prayed for leniency, as he is a first-time offender and was just 23 years old at the time of the offence. He said he was studying at a private college in Zirakpur in BA first year at the time of his arrest. He has been in custody for around three years now and his career has been ruined.
The court observed that the contents of the charge against the accused were proved by the prosecution beyond doubt. Ruling out that the police party had any personal enmity with the accused or had falsely implicated him, the court sentenced Khan to 10-year rigorous imprisonment.