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Police fail to submit forensic report, HC grants bail in 1.6kg drug seizure case
The Punjab and Haryana high court has granted default bail to a Fatehabad resident who was arrested with 1
The Punjab and Haryana high court has granted default bail to a Fatehabad resident who was arrested with 1.6kg ganja in December 2020.
In the case in hand, the police had submitted challan without the forensic report. Taking that as ground, accused Bhim Sain had approached high court seeking bail earlier this month.
The FIR in question was registered on December 22, 2020 under the NDPS Act at station city, Fatehabad. The challan was submitted on February 11.
The petitioner had argued that in various judgments it had been held that filing of the challan without FSL report will not be regarded as a complete challan and, thus, the accused will be entitled to default bail.
The government had admitted that FSL report has not been submitted but reasoned that challan will be considered a complete one.
Taking note of the fact that the challan has not been submitted and the importance of FSL report in drugs cases, the bench of justice Anupinder Singh Grewal ordered release of the accused on bail.
Earlier this month, a coordinate bench too had released an accused from Sirsa on bail on similar grounds observing that the forensic reports in drugs seizure cases form the foundation of the case of prosecution and in case the same is not there, the entire case of prosecution “falls to ground”. In both the cases in hand, accused were found with commercial quantity drugs.
The court also took note of strong observations made in one Ajit Singh’s case in which another bench had observed: “We emphasise on the stringent aspect of the NDPS Act which would compellingly persuade us to take the aforesaid view (granting default bail). Without determining the nature and content of the contraband, it will be draconian to propel an accused into the throes of a trial.”
“The liberty of an individual will constantly be imperiled at the hands of dubious officials of the police who may venture to falsely implicate a person,” the bench had observed.
