NIRANJAN SINGH DILIPSINGH BHULLAR Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner-detenu has filed this habeas corpus petition under Article 226 of the Constitution challenging the detention order passed by the Secretary (Preventive Detention) to the Government of Maharashtra, Home Department and Detaining Authority on February 26, 1991 detaining him under section 3 (1) of the Prevention of illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988 in order to prevent him from engaging in transportation, warehousing and concealment of narcotic drugs.

(2.) THE grounds of detention of the same date (annexure B to the petition) show that the allegations against the petitioner were that on February 9, 1990 at about 00. 50 hours the control room of the Bombay Police directed the Inspector of Kalachowkey Police Station to verify abandoned and suspected vehicles parked near the compound wall of Veterinary College, Dr. Vijay Walimbe Marg. On receipt of such information, Police Inspector Ingale and Head Constable Shirish Desai and staff of Kalachowkey police station rushed to the spot. They met Senior Police Inspector Nikam who was on the zonal night round at the junction of Dr. Vijay Walimbe Marg and informed him about the message received from the control room upon which Inspector Nikam also accompanied them. On reaching the spot, it was noticed that a motor lorry No. RNQ-6258 and motor tax No. 2597 were stationary. Motor car no. DEB-8090 was also parked there. It was further noticed that the engine of motor lorry No. RNQ-6258 was on. There was no trace of the occupants of the vehicles. A search for the occupants of the vehicles was made, but in vain. It appears that Police Inspector Pawaskar thereafter was contacted at his residence. During the investigation it was revealed that motor lorry No. RNQ-6258 was loaded with gunny bags containing lime stones. However, peculiar smell was coming out of the consignment in the said lorry. A further search revealed that gunny bag contained something soft and powder like thing which turned out to be brown sugar. On further search, 5 more gunny bags full of packets with different markings and numbers in Urdu were found. In the Ambassador Car No. DEB-8090 3 gunny bags were found near the rear seat. The contents of the said gunny bags also gave a peculiar odour like the packets found in the motor lorry. The drivers of the vehicles were not traceable. During the search of motor tax No. MMT-2597 a gunny bag was found in the dickey. Ultimately it was revealed that all the three vehicles contained large quantities of narcotic drugs. Thereafter the three vehicles were brought to the Kalachowkey police station and the incident was reported to the Deputy Commissioner of Police in-charge of the narcotic drugs. Police Inspector Pathan from the narcotic cell reached Kalachowkey police station with drug identification kit and tested the substance-taken out from the bags and found that the contents found from the bags from said three vehicles was heroin. On further investigation, the owners of the vehicles were traced and brought to the Kalachowkey police station. The owner of the truck was one Bhagwandas Ratanlal Rathi from Rajasthan who had no concern with the incident. The petitioner was arrested on May 12,1990, on being found that he was the owner of the ambassador car No. DEB-8090 and also the car No. MMT-2597. During further investigation, the premises of the petitioner at 35, G. D. Ambedkar Marg, Bombay were searched. But no narcotic drug was found at the above place. However, on reliable information the premises allegedly occupied by the petitioner were again visited on February 14, 1990 during which a heap of grey sand lying in the front of the closed door of a room facing west was found. Concealed under the sand were two pieces of Shabadi tiles. There were plywood planks covering the same by which a hollow portion was created. When the plywood planks were removed, it was noticed that there was a trench admeasuring 31"x25". On thorough search of the said trench it was noticed that the trench was filled in with polythene bags. The said polythene bags were then removed and it came to the light that these bags contained small packets numbering 40. The contents of these 40 packets were hashish, weighing 193 kgs.

(3.) IT is in this background that the petitioner came to be detained under the impugned detention order.