HC grants bail to customs clearing agent in 191kg heroin haul
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Thursday granted bail to a Mumbai-resident who was arrested in 2021 for possession of 191kg heroin, stored in a Mumbai-based warehouse
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Thursday granted bail to a Mumbai-resident who was arrested in 2021 for possession of 191kg heroin, stored in a Mumbai-based warehouse. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence had seized the consignment from a warehouse in Raigad, that was allegedly imported from Afghanistan under the garb of liquorice roots.
Kondibhau Gunjal, a partner of M/s M.B. Shipping and Logistics Services, a customs brokering firm, was arrested along with the customs house agent who allegedly processed the paperwork for the transaction. The authorities also found invoices in the name of Sarvim Exports issued by one Ghulam Mohaiuddin and transit documents issued by the Ministry of Commerce, Afghanistan.
Dr. Sujay Kantawala, appearing for Gunjal, argued that the accused had been in custody for nearly three years and that the trial’s conclusion did not seem possible in the foreseeable future.
Agreeing with Dr. Kantawala, justice Bharat Deshpande granted bail to the accused on the conditions that he would attend the trial proceedings on every date, deposit his passport with the trial court, and would not travel outside the jurisdiction without the permission of the trial court.
“The clearing agent or a person who is facilitating the agent to clear the consignment is not supposed to know an exact material which is found in the said consignment though such bills required to be mentioned about it,” the court said, while granting bail to Gunjal.