Masum Ansari Alias Md. Masoom Anasari v. State of Jharkhand
Bail application rejected – NDPS Act, 1985, Sections 17 and 18
Case brief
What is this about?
Jharkhand High Court at Ranchi; B.A. No. 10992 of 2025 (neutral citation 2026:JHHC:163); Order dated 06.01.2026; Coram: Justice Gautam Kumar Choudhary (single-judge bench). NDPS bail application dismissed. Keywords: bail rejection; Sections 17 and 18 NDPS Act, 1985; 3.1 kg opium seized from car JH05BB 7957; petitioner alleged to be merely the driver; commercial quantity; seizure-list signature of accused not required by law; omission does not cast suspicion on seizure; Tamar P.S. Case No. 29 of 2025(N); NDPS Case No. 108 of 2025; Special Judge (NDPS) Ranchi; trial directed to be expedited; advocates Abhishek Kumar Dubey, Atif Anwar, Harsh Utsav (petitioner) and Bhola Nath Ojha, APP (State).
What did the court decide?
There is no requirement of law that the signature of the accused person in whose presence the contraband is seized be taken on the seizure list; the signature serves only to ensure that a copy of the seizure list is furnished to the accused, and its omission does not go to the root of the matter so as to cast suspicion on the seizure of the contraband.