Sushant Singh Rajput case drug link: All offences under NDPS Act are non-bailable, says Bombay HC

The Bombay high court (HC) on Wednesday held that all offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 are non-bailable, while granting

The Bombay high court (HC) on Wednesday held that all offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 are non-bailable, while granting bail to two house staffers of the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput – Samuel Miranda and Dipesh Sawant – in connection with the drug link that emerged through WhatsApp chats while investigating his death.

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Rajput was found dead in his Bandra home on June 14. Justice Sarang Kotwal rejected the argument advanced on behalf of the two Rajput staffers and another accused Abdel Basit Parihar, all arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), that all offences involving small quantity of contraband material were bailable and such accused are entitled to bail as a matter of right.

The counsels for the accused, advocate Taraq Sayed and advocate Subodh Desai, had relied on a June 2010 decision of a single judge bench of the HC in Stephen Mueller’s case, in support of their contention. Justice Kotwal, however, refused to accept the argument.

The judge relied on a 1999 judgment of the Constitution bench of Supreme Court, holding that all offences under the NDPS Act were cognisable and non-bailable. The judge also rejected the argument that the observation of the Constitution bench was merely a passing reference and not a binding decision. Justice Kotwal said the observation has been subsequently referred by the other Apex court benches as a binding precedent and no other court can take any other view on the issue.

“If the accused claims bail as a matter of right in case of possession of small quantity, no investigation can be carried out to find the source and trade of the contraband,” said justice Kotwal.

“This defeats the object of the Act. One cannot overlook the prevailing situation in today’s society. Offenders involving smaller quantity or lesser punishment expose themselves to immediate arrest. They cannot claim bail as of right. The Act needs to have this deterrent effect to curb the spread of drug abuse,” the judge added.

The single judge bench, however, granted bail to Miranda and Sawant on furnishing personal bond of ₹50,000 each, along with one or two sureties in the same amount. The HC granted them bail primarily in view of the fact that they were employees of Rajput and purportedly accepted deliveries of contraband material on instructions of the late actor or his girlfriend, Rhea. HC said there was no material to show that they were part of any chain or had sold drugs to earn profit. They acted only at the behest of their employer, the court added.

Like actor Rhea Chakraborty, the HC has also given them time to furnish sureties, paving way for their immediate release from prison. Both of them are ordered to surrender their passports and also restrained from leaving India.

The HC, however, rejected the bail plea of Parihar, a student of architecture, Chakraborty’s brother Showik and other alleged peddlers and suppliers arrested in connection with the case.