The Patna High Court rejected a regular bail petition in a narcotics case involving commercial quantity recovery. The single judge held that Section 37 conditions were not satisfied due to unfulfilled bail parameters and length of custody irrelevance.
The bail petition stands rejected.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.55466 of 2023
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-40 Year-2022 Thana- PHULWARIA District- Begusarai
======================================================
KHURSHID AHAMAD @ WASIM AHMAD S/O MOGEES AHMAD R/O Village- Nakrahi, P.S- Hanuman Ganj, Distt.- Sultanpur (Uttar Pradesh).
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
THE STATE OF BIHAR
... ... Opposite Party/s
====================================================== Appearance : For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Gyanendra Kumar Shukla For the Opposite Party/s : Mr.Nand Kishore Prasad ======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE CHANDRA PRAKASH SINGH
ORAL ORDER
3 15-09-2023
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.55466 of 2023(3) dt.15-09-2023 2/4
truck at the time of recovery of the said ganja .
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.55466 of 2023(3) dt.15-09-2023 3/4
Hussain vs. State (NCT of Delhi) the petitioner remained in custody for over 7 years whereas this petitioner remained in custody only for about 1 and a half year. There is no prolonged incarceration. He has further submitted that the authority of the Hon'ble Supreme Court cited by the learned counsel for the petitioner does not support his contention.
As per Section 37 of the N.D.P.S. Act, the two conditions are that the Court should be satisfied with :-
(i) There are reasonable grounds for believing that the accused is not guilty of such offence; and
(ii) He is not likely to commit any offence while on
bail.
If either of these two conditions is not satisfied, the bar operates and the accused cannot be released on bail. This Court is of the opinion that the parameters of bail available under Section 37 of the Act have not satisfied in the facts of the instant case.
The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Narcotics Control Bureau v. Mohit Aggarwal 2022 SCC OnLine SC 891 has held that “ The length of the period of his custody or the fact that the charge-sheet has been filed and the trial has commenced are by themselves not considerations that can be
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.55466 of 2023(3) dt.15-09-2023 4/4
treated as persuasive grounds for granting relief to the respondent under Section 37 of the N.D.P.S. Act.”
the trial and conclude the same preferably within 9 months.
(Chandra Prakash Singh, J)
Alok Verma/-
2 issues framed by the court
Whether bail should be granted in the present case involving recovery of commercial quantity of ganja.
Whether the length of custody or filing of charge-sheet constitutes persuasive grounds for bail under Section 37 of the N.D.P.S. Act in commercial quantity cases.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
Union of India vs. Shiv Shankar KesariReferred¶19
Union of India vs. Shiv Shankar Kesari (2007) 7 SCC 798 · Who else cites this
Mohd Muslim @ Hussain vs. State (NCT of Delhi)Referred¶20
Mohd Muslim @ Hussain vs. State (NCT of Delhi)
Narcotics Control Bureau v. Mohit AggarwalFollowed¶28
Narcotics Control Bureau v. Mohit Aggarwal 2022 SCC OnLine SC 891 · Who else cites this
3 provisions across 2 enactments
Khurshid Ahmad @ Wasim Ahmad
The State of Bihar
Chandra Prakash Singh
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
