PARAMJEET SINGH Vs. UNION TERRITORY OF J&K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) According to the prosecution version on 07-02-2020, upon receiving an information in Police Station, Banihal through some reliable source that a truck bearing registration No. PB05AL-7643 driven by one person Paramjeet Singh S/o Balkar Singh R/o Mamroot, Tehsil & District Ferozpur, Punjab is carrying illegally banned Poppy Straw like substance while coming from Kashmir to Jammu. Upon receiving the said information and registration of case in Police Station, Banihal, a naka is said to have been laid down at Chakori-Nallah NHW-44 and on arrival of the aforesaid truck at naka same was stopped and after giving a notice by the Investigation Officer u/s 50 NDPS Act, the person of the driver named above was searched however, nothing objectionable recovered, but upon searching of the truck on spot after permission from PMIC, Banihal 40 kgs of Poppy straw like substance came to be recovered from the tool box of the truck where upon 500/500 grams of the substance taken as samples were sent for FSL. The truck in question is said to have been also seized and after completing the legal formalities by the Investigation Officer, a case under Section 08/15 of NDPS Act is said to have been registered and upon completion of investigation charge sheet No. 16/2020 is stated to have been filed on 23- 06-2020 before the Court of Sessions Judge, Ramban.

(2.) The petitioner/applicant herein, in the instant application states to have earlier filed a bail application before the court of Principal Sessions Judge, Ramban being file No. 50/Bail on 09-06-2020 seeking grant of default bail on the premise that the petitioner/applicant is entitled to bail in view of the fact that the petitioner/applicant came to be arrested and sent into custody by Police on 07-02-2020 and that the respondents/nonapplicants filed charge sheet after the stipulated period and is therefore, entitled to default bail u/s 167 (2) Cr. PC as a matter of right. According to the petitioner/applicant the said bail application however, came to be dismissed by the trial court on 24-06-2020 after the filing of the challan which had been filed on 23-06-2020, as such, there was no reason and occasion for the trial court to dismiss the bail application. It is being further stated that the petitioner is under in incarceration since 05-04-2020 and that bail cannot be with held as a means of punishment also in view of the fact that there is a grave threat to the life of the petitioner/applicant on account of outbreak of Covid-19 while being lodged in jail.

(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioner/applicant while reiterating the grounds urged in the application argued that the alleged substance recovered admittedly is of an intermediate quantity and that the rigor of section 37 of NDPS Act does not apply to the case. Learned counsel would further submit that the petitioner/applicant is otherwise entitled to default bail, in that, the charge sheet came to be filed by the respondents/non-applicants after period stipulated under law.