Punjab and Haryana High Court deprecates 'shoddy probe' in drugs case

Chandigarh, May 24

In a major embarrassment for the Punjab Police, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has deprecated “slipshod and shoddy investigation” into a drugs case before directing the forwarding of the order’s copy to the Director General of Police “to enable him to draw appropriate action in accordance with law against police officers/officials concerned”.

The direction came as the High Court ordered the release of the bail-applicant/accused from judicial custody. Justice Sureshwar Thakur observed the raid carried out by the police on the premises concerned and also the recovery, if any, effected in pursuance was, prima facie, at the current stage “concluded to be vitiated”. It breached the mandatory statutory provisions embodied in Section 42 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.

The matter was brought to Justice Thakur’s notice after the accused filed a petition seeking bail in an FIR registered on December 15, 2020, at Badhni Kalan police station in Moga under the provisions of the NDPS Act. Justice Thakur observed the bail applicant-petitioner was stated to be suffering judicial incarceration since then.

The prosecution story was that the police officials raided the petitioner’s house on the basis of secret information, after which 18 bags of poppy husk were recovered. Justice Thakur observed the weight made the matter fall within the ambit of commercial quantity. As such, Section 37 of the Act was applicable, constraining the court not to admit the petitioner’s regular bail.

Justice Thakur observed the state counsel submitted that the prosecution case was rested upon prior information regarding the concealment of narcotics or psychotropic substance in the premises concerned. As such an imperative or peremptory statutory duty fell upon the Investigating Officer to obtain search warrant or authorisation from the magistrate concerned “whereupon the raid would become valid and also the recovered incriminatory substance would be taint-free”. This was especially so as the premises were raided between sunset and sunrise. But apparently neither the authorisation, nor the search warrant, was obtained.

Justice Thakur added it was open to the police officials concerned to proceed to validly raid the premises. But an imperative statutory duty was cast on the police officials to record the reasons regarding the immensity of time being consumed for obtaining relevant authorisations or search warrant from the magistrate.

“However, even in respect of the imperative statutory necessity in exception to the necessity of search warrants being obtained from the magistrate concerned, the state counsel submits that the statutory duty also remained uncomplied with by the police officials concerned,” Justice Thakur added.