Ravi Bharti @ Ravi Kumar v. The State of Bihar
NDPS – bail – codeine-containing cough syrup
Case brief
What is this about?
Patna High Court, Criminal Miscellaneous No.14232 of 2025 (decided 19-03-2025, Soni Shrivastava, J): bail granted in a section 21(c) NDPS Act case; recovery of 110 bottles (11 litres) of codeine syrup from a hut behind Sardar Line Hotel, village Sonbarsa (Chautham P.S. Case No.340 of 2024; Special Case (NDPS) No.29 of 2024, Khagaria); court holds that the codeine content (about 22,000 mg = 2.20 grams of codeine phosphate), not the syrup volume, governs the small-versus-commercial quantity analysis (small quantity 10 grams; commercial quantity 1,000 grams per the schedule); charge-sheet on record without chemical/F.S.L report; bail bond Rs.20,000/- with two sureties. Keywords: codeine phosphate, small quantity, commercial quantity, cough syrup, NDPS bail, Khagaria, Chautham.
What did the court decide?
Petitioner enlarged on bail in connection with Special Case (NDPS) No.29 of 2024 arising out of Chautham P.S. Case No.340 of 2024 on furnishing bail bond of Rs.20,000/- (Rupees Twenty Thousand) with two sureties of the like amount each to the satisfaction of the learned Additional District & Sessions Judge-cum-Special Judge, NDPS, Khagaria, subject to conditions: (i) one of the bailors shall be an own/close member of the petitioner's family; (ii) cooperation in investigation and appearance on each and every trial date, with liberty to the Trial Court to cancel the bail bonds on default in appearance on two consecutive dates.