Delhi High Court junks appeal against man’s acquittal
New Delhi, December 24
The Delhi High Court has observed that refusal by an accused to get a search conducted before a magistrate or gazetted officer under Section 50 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 would be vitiated if he misinterprets/misunderstands the questions put to him.
A single-judge bench of Justice Anish Dayal observed that the requirements of Section 50 being mandatory in nature are in consonance with the right of an accused to know his legal rights.
“The compliance of such requirements should, therefore, be complete and not left in doubt. A mandatory requirement by definition has to be complied with in toto, in its full letter and spirit, and not as a halfway measure or in a patchy, perfunctory or deficient manner,” the court said without mincing words.
The observations were made by the court while dismissing an appeal filed by Delhi Police challenging the order of a special judge acquitting a Spanish national on December 22. — IANS
