9911796707
TMI Blog2002 (6) TMI 588X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d, Khar for selling narcotic drug between 4.00/4.30 p.m. on the same day. As per the prosecution case, PI Patel reduced the said information in writing in information book and after drawing the extract of information personally delivered the same to Assistant Commissioner of Police as well as Deputy Commissioner of Police, Narcotic Cell. Thereafter panch witnesses were summoned. The information was disclosed to them as well as to Arvind Narayan Wadhankar PSI and other staff members and after preparing pre-paid panchanama by giving security of police to panch witnesses, the raiding party proceeded to the said spot near Hanuman Mandir. The raiding party ambushed near the said spot and then the appellant came thee, watch was kept on his activi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Mrs. Gauri Jadhav, counsel appearing for the appellant, vehemently submitted that in the present case the members of the raiding party did not follow the provisions of law at all and that resulted in serious miscarriage of justice. She pointed out firstly that when the evidence of PI Patel and PI Wadhankar was making it clear that the appellant was an illiterate person and was knowing only Marathi and Hindi, panchanama was drawn in English language. According to her submission, it was indirectly denying him the opportunity of knowing what was being written in the panchanama. She further submitted that the appellant has not been informed that he is having a right to be searched before a magistrate or gazetted officer and nothing has been red ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... investigating officers should, as a matter of rule, draw the panchanamas in Marathi in Maharashtra which would enable the accused to know the said panchanama and understand the same. Not only that, the copy of the panchanama is to be given to the accused immediately after it is drawn. The reason is that he should known as to what has been written in the panchanama which is going to be used as corroborative piece of evidence, corroborative to the evidence of the pancy witnesses and the members of the raiding party. If the panchanamas are drawn in Marathi and they are read over to the accused immediately after panchanamas are drawn, the accused would be able to raise objection in respect of the sentences which are not keeping consistency with ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f Section 50, the prosecution case fails more miserably. In this case, the seized articles have not been produced before the officer incharge of the nearest police station as required by Section 55 of the NDPS Act. There is no evidence on record to show that the seals of such an officer have been impressed on the samples along with the seal of the officer in-charge of the raiding party. There was no necessity of taking him back to Azad Maidan Police Station and depositing the articles there in Azad Maidan Police Station. This assumes importance in view of the fact that when the article shave been produced before the Court they were out of shape and the nature of the substance was changed. Some of the bags were having the contents which were ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... against the concerned official so that the laxity on the part of the investigating authority is crubed. In every case the end result is important but the means to achieve it must remain above board. The remedy cannot be worse than the disease itself. The legitimacy of judicial process may come under cloud if the Court is seen to condone acts of lawlessness conducted by the investigating agency during search operations and may also undermine respect for law and may have the effect of unconscionably compromising the administration of justice. That cannot be permitted. An accused is entitled to a fair trial. A conviction resulting from an unfair trial is contrary to our concept of justice. The use of evidence collected in breach of the safegu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e order of conviction and sentence passed against the appellant. Had those provisions been followed scrupulously the samples would not have come before the Court without labels and in a shabby condition shantching out the credibility from the prosecution evidence. 12. The learned trial Judge has not considered the evidence in proper way and by noticing the infirmity on material points as mentioned in the above discussion. Therefore, the trial Court has landed in error in recording the finding of conviction which resulted in sentence against the appellant. 13. The failure of compliance of important provisions of law if taken together wholly, has resulted in failure of justice. Therefore, it cannot be said to have been proved that the a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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