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TMI Blog2020 (9) TMI 168X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ay Bhandari and Mr Digvijay Singh, Advocates For the Respondents : Mr Subhash Bansal, Senior Standing Counsel for NCB with Mr Shashwat Bansal, Advocate ORDER [Hearing held through video conferencing] VIBHU BAKHRU, J. (ORAL) 1. The petitioner has filed the present petition seeking bail in connection with complaint case bearing S.C. No.107/2018 filed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (hereafter NCB ) against the petitioner and six other accused for commission of offence punishable under Sections 8(c), 20 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (hereafter NDPS Act ). 2. It is alleged in the complaint that on 05.11.2017, a secret information was received by one of the intelligence officers of NCB that two persons, Rafik and Guljar aged about twenty five years and twenty two years respectively, would arrive at Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station for their onward journey to Mumbai in the evening of 05.11.2017. According to the information, they would be carrying charas in their bag and their search would yield a huge quantity of charas. According to NCB, this information was telephonically communicated to the Superintendent, Delhi Zonal Uni ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tances in all the twenty seven packets were similar and therefore, the same was mixed and two samples weighing 25 grams each were drawn and placed in a zip lock pouches. According to NCB, the said samples were sent for chemical analysis which also confirmed that the substances recovered was charas. 6. According to NCB, notices under Section 67 of the NDPS Act were served on Rafik, Guljar and Ramdev and their statements were recorded. Statements of Rafik and Guljar were recorded on 06.11.2017. Rafik, in his statement (which the NCB claims, he tendered voluntarily), stated that he was a resident of village Hurla, Tehsil Bhuntar, District Kullu, Himachal Pradesh. He stated that he never studied in school. Initially, he used to look after the cattle (buffaloes) at home. Thereafter, for about 5 to 6 years, he was engaged in the work of transporting sand and grit on mules. And, since the past six months, he was driving a tourist taxi. He stated that near about 4/5 months ago he met a tourist named Jay Somaiya (petitioner herein). He stated that subsequently on two or three occasions Jay Somaiya had used his taxi. He claimed that the petitioner had taken his telephone number and used t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 10. He disclosed that he had come to Himachal Pradesh for the first time in the year 2015 and had met Sh. Neel Chand of Choj Village and Purushottam @ Kalu of Malana. He stated that he was already a charas addict and knew that illicit trafficking of charas yields quick and hefty amount of money. He disclosed that he started buying charas from Neel Chand and Purushottam and selling the same to Shaunak, Vishwendra, Abbas and Samir of Mumbai. He stated that he did not know the exact address of the said persons, but they were residing in Andheri (West), Mumbai and they were his friends. He stated that on this occasion he had arrived in Kullu on 01.11.2017 and was staying in the house of Bebo Ram on rent at Choj Village of Kullu. He stated that he had bought half a kg of illicit charas from Neel Chand and Purushottam and he had sent one kg charas each from Kullu to Mumbai through Rafik and Guljar who were residents of Nagwain, District Mandi. The petitioner also disclosed that he had been using Rafik to carry the illicit consignment of one kg of charas which he had bought from Neel Chand and Purushottam @ Kalu. He stated that Rafik and Guljar worked as carriers for illicit trafficking ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dence to convict the petitioner and his statements are corroborated. In particular, the NCB relies upon the bank statements of Neel Chand and his family members where certain funds are shown to have been deposited in cash. NCB also relies on CDRs of the calls between the petitioner and Neel Chand and the petitioner and Rafik. 15. It does not appear that the cash deposits in the accounts of Neel Chand or his family members have been identified to correspond with any of the transactions. Further, there is also no material to establish that the cash deposited in the accounts of Neel Chand and his family members at Mumbai or at Goa has been deposited by the petitioner. The learned counsel for NCB had stated that there are some entries which reflect cash deposits and mentioned the name Jay and this according to him would clearly establish that the petitioner had deposited some cash in the bank accounts. However, it is not disputed that the deposit slips which would indicate whether any deposits have been made by the petitioner or not, have not been collected. 16. It is also relevant to note that the petitioner, in his disclosure statement, had recorded on 06.01.2017 merely accepte ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to be the prosecution s case that the petitioner had begun dealing in drugs to feed his addiction. But, as noticed earlier, there is nothing on record to establish that the petitioner is a drug addict. 22. In view of the above, the present petition is allowed and the petitioner is directed to be released on bail on his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of ₹ 25,000/- with one surety of an equivalent amount to the satisfaction of the concerned Jail Superintendent/Trial Court/Duty Magistrate. This is also subject to the following further conditions:- a) the petitioner shall provide a contact number and ensure that he is reachable on it all times; b) the petitioner shall mark his presence before the concerned SHO of the local police station where he resides on first Monday of each calendar month; c) the petitioner shall telephonically report to the concerned IO on the first Monday of each calendar month and disclose his whereabouts; d) the petitioner shall ensure that he is available in all proceedings before the concerned court; and, e) the petitioner shall not try to contact any of the person named in his disclosure statement either directly or indirectly ..... 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