DINESHCHANDRA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BOTH these appeals arise from the judgment dated 31-10-1995 passed by VIth Addl. Sessions Judge, Indore, in S. T. No. 426/1994, convicting accused appellants Dineshchandra s/o Shankarlal, Dineshchandra s/o Ramchandra and Yusuf s/o Fakhruddin, under Section 8/21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (for short, 'the NDPS Act') and sentencing them each to undergo 10 years' RI and pay fine Rs. 1. 00 lac and in default of payment of fine to suffer additional RI for one year.

(2.) IN short the case of the prosecution before the Trial Court was that on 31-5-1994, around 8. 15 pm. , on barrier No. 8, A. B. Road, Mhow, Ramesh Kumar Sharma, Inspector, Central Narcotics Bureau, Neemuch, accompanied by two panch witnesses and other staff members, stopped a passenger bus bearing Registration No. MP09 S 684 coming from Indore and going to Mumbai. Accused applicants who were sitting in the said bus on three different seats were taken out along with their bag and baggages and after compliance with the provisions of Section 50 of the NDPS Act, a search of their belongings was conducted. It is said that 2. 250 Kilograms of Brown Sugar kept in four plastic bags was recovered from an attache carried by accused appellant Dineshchandra s/o Shankarlal. A sample of the contraband was drawn, seized and sealed duly. On analysis at Government Opium and Alkaloid Works, Neemuch, it was found to be an Opium derivative i. e. , Diacetyl Morphine. The respondent-Department after other investigation charge-sheeted the accused persons for trial which ended into their conviction and sentence as aforesaid.

(3.) I have heard Mr. Vivek Singh, learned counsel for appellant Yusuf; Mr. Z. A. Khan, learned counsel for appellant Dinesh s/o Ramchandra; Mr. A. Salim, learned counsel for appellant Dineshchandra s/o Shankarlal; and Mr. G. Desai, learned counsel for respondent-Department.