MOHD AHSAN Vs. CUSTOMS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The following questions have been referred to this Bench by a learned Single Judge of this Court:

(2.) The background for such reference is that during the course of the hearing in the bail application, filed on behalf of the petitioner, in a Complaint Case No. 62/2020, dtd. 31/1/2018, filed by customs under Ss. 21(C) and 23(C) of The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 (hereinafter "NDPS Act"), one of the points that arose for consideration was whether the recovery of 110 bottles of "Phensedyl New" weighing 100 gms each and having a Codeine concentration of 0.17% per bottle would be considered as "commercial quantity" under the NDPS Act.

(3.) The attention of the learned Single Judge was drawn to a judgment of another learned Single Judge of this Court in Iqbal Singh vs. State (BAIL APPLN. 645/2020), wherein the learned Single Judge vide order dtd. 31/7/2020 had held that cough syrup bottle (Onerex) containing Codeine Phosphate would fall outside the scope of the definition of "manufactured drug" under Sec. 2(xi) of the NDPS Act. The aforesaid finding of the learned Single Judge was based on various provisions of the NDPS Act as well as the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. The facts of the bail application in Iqbal Singh (supra) were similar to the facts in the present bail application.