HC grants bail to chemists accused of illegally transporting hypnotic drug

The Bombay HC granted bail to two licensed chemists arrested for allegedly illegally transporting Nitrazepam tablets, citing weak prosecution evidence.

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) recently granted bail to two licensed chemists who were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Mumbai, in connection with the alleged illegal transport of Nitrazepam tablets—a prescription medication used to treat insomnia and a powerful hypnotic drug which possesses strong sedative and skeletal muscle relaxant properties.

HC grants bail to chemists accused of illegally transporting hypnotic drug

Justice NR Borkar, hearing the bail pleas, noted that both accused were licensed chemists and had prima facie obtained the tablets through legal means.

The NCB had arrested the duo in May 2023 during a crackdown on an alleged interstate drug syndicate operating out of Pune. Officials had seized approximately 5,900 Nitrazepam tablets during the raid. The chemists were accused of sourcing the drug from Bihar and supplying it illegally in Pune, treating it as a psychotropic substance.

The prosecution argued that there was no documentation to prove that the seized tablets had been procured through legitimate channels. It also claimed to possess incriminating material—including WhatsApp chats, call data records (CDRs), and bank transactions—linking the accused to the drug syndicate.

However, advocates Tarak Sayed and Anish Pereira, representing one of the accused, Rajesh Changude, told the court that Changude was suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis and was currently under medical treatment. They also pointed out that he had been in custody for nearly two years, even as the trial had yet to begin, with charges still not framed.

The defence further argued that the Nitrazepam tablets were being sold to a well-known manufacturer of generic medicines, who in turn distributed them through authorised channels.

In granting bail, the court observed that while the chemists had been arrested for allegedly selling the drug illegally, no action appeared to have been taken against the wider distribution network that ultimately received the tablets. This gap in the investigation, the court implied, weakened the case against the accused.