MEGH RAJ Vs. C B I

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The learned trial court convicted and sentenced both the appellants to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 15 years each and to pay a fine of Rs. 2 lakhs each, failing which they were further ordered to undergo four years imprisonment under Sections 20 and 29 NDPS Act for possessing 95 kilograms of charas. It is not out of place to mention here that the maximum sentence prescribed for such like offence is 20 years and the maximum fine is Rs.2 lakhs.

(2.) Learned counsel for the appellants did not pick up a conflict with the merits of this case. He, however, made the following submissions. He invited the attention of the Court towards the fact that the appellants are incarcerated in jail for the last more than six years. They have no vicious antecedents. They will never turn their hands to crime again. They have learnt a lesson. Opportunity to reform themselves must be granted. The fact that the accused are products of an iniquitious social environment should be taken into account. Lastly, the poverty of the appellants serves as an extenuation. He prayed that under these circumstances minimum sentence prescribed under the Law should be awarded and the order passed by the trial court should be modified accordingly. In order to embolden his case, he has cited the following three authorities.

(3.) In M. Prabhulal Vs. The Assistant Director, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, 2003 VIII AD (S.C.) 247 = 2003 (3) JCC 1631, heroin weighing 66.1 kilograms was seized from the possession of the accused. The Supreme Court maintained the sentence already granted by the Lower Court wherein the accused was sentenced to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for 10 years and to pay a fine in the sum of Rs.1,00,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to undergo further imprisonment for two years.