ULRIKE APPEIHAGEN Vs. STATE OF GOA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE accused person in Sessions Case No. 25/90 challenges by this Appeal the conviction and sentence passed against her by the learned Sessions Judge, Panaji, for offences punishable under Sections 21 and 20 (b) (ii) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (Hereinafter called the N. D. P. S. Act ).

(2.) THE brief facts of the case. are that, on 24. 1. 1990, when a police party headed by P. S. I. Torezinha DSouza, from the Anti-Narcotic Cell, went for a random raid from Calanguto to Anjuna via Baga, for the purposes of checking drugs, they stopped at Knock Innt bar where a group of 14-15 foreigners were sitting under a Tmallot inside the compound wall of the bar. On seeing the police jeep the foreigners started coming out. At that time the accused was stopped by P. S. I. Terezinha who disclosed to her that she wanted to search her for drugs and offered herself to be searched by the accused along with the raiding party. When the accused declined to take their search, P. S. I. Terezinha personally searched the accused in the presence of two panchas and from her cloth money bag, tied around her waist, she recovered one paper puddi containing whitish powder, about 1 gm. in weight, suspected to be cocaine and one piece of charas, also weighing around 1 gm. , which were both sealed and attached under a competent panchanama. Thereupon the accused was taken into custody to the Calangute Police Station for further investigation. A complaint was lodged by P. S. 1. Terezinha under Sections 21 and 20 (b) (ii) of the N. D. P. S. Act and after she completed the investigation a competent charge-sheet was filed against the accused in the Court of the Sessions Judge, Panaji. The learned Sessions Judge framed the charge against the accused for the aforesaid offences and on here pleading not guilty the prosecution recorded the evidence of four witnesses to prove its case. P. W: 1 Nandakishor G. Vijaykar, Assistant Chemical Analyser, from Bombay, was examined to prove that the drug sample which was sent for testing by the Calanguto Police Station, in Criminal Case No. 38/90, was containing charas. P. W. 2 M. K. Malwe, who is also an Asstt. Chemical Analyser, from Bombay, has deposed that he has tested another sample sent by Anti-Narcotic Cell, Panaji, connected with Cr. No. 38/90 of Calangute Police Station which consisted of a polythene paper with whitish powder and which was found to be cocaine hydrochloride. P. W. 3 Krishna S. Hadfadkar was the panch witness in whose presence the accused was searched and the drugs seized from her waist belt and P. W. 4 the Investigating Officer, Terezinha DSouza, who has stated that when she accosted the accused while leaving Knock Inn bar she recovered from the money bag tied around her waist one puddi with whitish powder and a piece of charas which were immediately attached along with the cloth belt.

(3.) THE statement of the accused, under Section 313, Cr. P. C. , was also recorded during which, although admitting her presence on the spot at the time of the raid, die accused flatly denied that she was carrying cocaine or charas in her waist belt and also the fact of recovery of any drugs from her possession. One witness, namely, D. W. 1 Simeon Ereira was examined in defence. He deposed that on that day, before the raiding party went to Knock Inn Bar where the accused was intercepted and detained by P. S. I. Terezinha, the came party conducted another raid at La Franza Bar, at Arpora, where he was arrested and taken into the police jeep.