Fifth bail application by Accused No.3, wife of the main accused, in a DRI case involving recovery of methamphetamine including 6.145 kg recovered at her instance from garbage. The court found statutory presumption under Section 35, applicability of Section 37 rigors for commercial quantity, and no change of circumstances; bail dismissed.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED : 08.05.2025
CORAM
THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE R.SAKTHIVEL
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
P.MonishaSheela, W/o.Phillomen Prakash ... Petitioner / Accused No.3
Vs.
Union of India represented by it Intelligence Officer, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, No.14, Saraswathi Nathi Street, Mahatma Gandhi Nagar, Madurai – 625014. (F.No.DRI/MDU/VIII/48/ENQ/INT-01/2024)
... Respondent / Complainant
PRAYER :- The Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 praying to grant bail to the petitioner in C.C.No.250 of 2024 pending on the file of the Special Court for EC and NDPS Act Cases, Madurai in connection with F.No.DRI/MDU/VIII/48/ENQ/INT-01/2024 on the file of the respondent.
For Petitioner : Mr.J.Ramesh, Advocate. For Respondent : Mr.Arul Vadivel @ Sekar, Special Public Prosecutor
https:// www.mhc.tn.gov ORDER : The Court made the following order :- .in/judis
1/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
This Criminal Original Petition has been filed by the petitioner on 17.04.2025 under Section 483 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 praying to grant bail to the petitioner in C.C.No.250 of 2024 pending on the file of the Special Court for EC and NDPS Act Cases, Madurai in connection with F.No. DRI/ MDU/ VIII/ 48/ ENQ/ INT- 01/2024 on the file of the respondent.
A2 regarding the remaining contraband, a search was conducted at his residence;
however, no recovery was made from the premises. Upon enquiry, the petitioner
2/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
stated that she had earlier been in custody of two white boxes and had disposed of them in two different garbage bins. Following this information, one box was recovered from a garbage bin near her residence, which was found to be empty. The second box, which she had disposed of in a garbage bin on 6th Main Road near P6 Police Station, Kodungaiyur, was subsequently recovered from the Chennai Corporation Dump Yard, Kodungaiyur, and was found to contain 6,145 grams of Methamphetamine. Since the petitioner attempted to destroy evidence by discarding the Methamphetamine that was kept by A2 in his house, the respondent registered a case against her for the above-mentioned offences. Hence, the case.
3/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
further submitted that the case has been posted on 15.05.2025 for execution of the Non-Bailable Warrant against A1 and, therefore, the trial is not likely to be completed within a short span of time. He also submitted that the petitioner is ready to abide by any stringent conditions that may be imposed by this Court. Accordingly, he prayed to grant bail to the petitioner.
4/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
would prove that the accused was involved in the conspiracy attracting Section 29 of the NDPS Act. Hence, rigors stated in Section 37 of the NDPS Act would be applicable to petitioner. Therefore, he vehemently opposed to grant bail to the petitioner, stating that if bail is granted, the petitioner may abscond and thereby delay the trial proceedings. Accordingly, he prays to dismiss the petition.
in Crl.O.P(MD).No.7005 of 2024 was dismissed on 02.07.2024. The relevant portions are extracted hereunder:
“5.Considering the facts and circumstances of the case and also considering the facts that the contraband involved in this case is a commercial quantity and the investigation is in crucial stage, this Court is not inclined to grant bail to the petitioner at this point of time.
6.Accordingly, this Criminal Original Petition is dismissed.
7.However, the petitioner is at liberty to agitate the matter before the trial Court after filing of charge sheet ”
7.1. The second bail application in Crl.O.P(MD).No.13226 of 2024 was
dismissed on 27.08.2024. The relevant portions are extracted hereunder:
“4. Considering the fact that totally 31.5 kilograms of
methamphetamine was recovered in the case, of which, through the
petitioner / A2, who is the wife of A1, 6.145 kilograms was recovered https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis
5/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
from the garbage from where she had thrown the contraband after
coming to know that her husband has been arrested, I am not inclined to enlarge the petitioner on bail.
7.2. The third bail application in Crl.O.P(MD).No.16445 of 2024 was dismissed on 27.09.2024. The relevant portions are extracted hereunder:
“6. This is not a case where the petitioner was arrayed as an accused merely on the basis of the co-accused's confession statement. Originally, the petitioner's husband was intercepted, and was found to be in possession of a huge quantity of 31 Kgs of Methamphetamine (50 Grams itself is the commercial quantity). Upon his arrest, when his house was sought to be searched, the petitioner was present in the house. However, nothing was found in the house. The petitioner is said to have confessed that she has packed the remaining contraband in two plastic bags and thrown them in the garbage. The petitioner led the respondents to the garbage bin. However, in the meanwhile, the garbage bin was lifted and the entire garbage had been sent to the dump yard. The petitioner accompanied the respondent police to the dump yard and identified the plastic bags, in which, she had stored 6.145 Kilograms of Methamphetamine and the said quantity itself is a huge quantity which was recovered from this petitioner only. Therefore, in this case it cannot be said that the petitioner is arrayed as an accused only on the confession of the co-accused.
6/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
and when the petitioner along with the accused are involved in an offence under the NDPS Act of huge quantity of Methamphetamine, which can affect a large number of individual youth and children, the argument relating to the petitioner being female and that she had female children absolutely does not appeal to this court.
considered in detail and by an order, dated 27.08.2024, this Court had dismissed the said bail application. There is no change of circumstances to enlarge the petitioner on bail.
dismissed.”
The fourth bail application in Crl.O.P(MD).No.20914 of 2024 was dismissed as withdrawn on 16.12.2024.
the petitioner, there arises a statutory presumption of a culpable mental state under Section 35 of the NDPS Act. In view of this presumption, it is for the petitioner to
rebut the same during the course of trial by proving that she had no such mental state in relation to the act constituting the offence. Further perusal of the materials available on record including the CDR details would show that the accused was involved in the conspiracy attracting Section 29 of the NDPS Act. It is also learnt that
the contraband seized in the present case is of a commercial quantity under the https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis
7/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
provisions of the NDPS Act. Hence, the rigors stated in Section 37 of the NDPS Act would be applicable to the present case. It is noted that the seizure mahazar was
prepared in the presence of witnesses, and this Court does not find any procedural violation in the preparation of the seizure mahazar during the course of the seizure.
sd/08/05/2025
/ TRUE COPY / /05/2025 Sub-Assistant Registrar (C.S.-I/ II /III/ IV) Madurai Bench of Madras High Court, Madurai - 625 023.
8/9
CRL.OP (MD) No.7165 of 2025
Pal
TO
CENTRAL PRISON FOR WOMEN, MADURAI.
MAHATMA GANDHI NAGAR, MADURAI- 625014.
ORDER
IN
CRL OP(MD) No.7165 of 2025 Date :08/05/2025
NBF/SAR/09.05.2025 9P/4C
Madurai Bench of Madras High Court is issuing certified copies in this format from 17/07/2023
9/9
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the petitioner should be granted bail under Section 483 BNSS in an NDPS case involving commercial quantity of methamphetamine despite four earlier bail applications being dismissed.
6 provisions across 2 enactments
P.MonishaSheela
Union of India represented by its Intelligence Officer, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Madurai
R.Sakthivel
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
