RAJENDRA AND ORS. Vs. STATE OF M.P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal has been filed against the judgment and order dated 15th July, 1994 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Bhind convicting the appellants under Section 8/18 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act and sentencing each of them to ten years' R.I. and a fine of Rs. one lac, in default, to further undergo R.I. for 2-1/2 years.

(2.) THE brief facts of the case are that on 22nd of August, 1993 at about 9.30 p.m. the two appellants were said to have been going together on a Rickshaw towards outside the Town of Bhind. The Town Inspector R. S. Raghuwanshi PW 1 apprehended them and made a search. On search, some amount of opium were found in possession of each of the appellants. The seized article was sent for chemi­cal examination which was found to be opium. The appellants were prosecuted. Prosecution examined PW 1, R. S. Raghuwanshi, the Town Inspector, who made search, PW 2, Subhash, who is an independent witness of the occurrence an PW 3, Jahidyar Khan, Sub-Inspector of Police, who was present at the time of search. The appellants had denied the charges and pleaded not guilty. The learned trial Court, after assessing the evidence, believed the prosecution case and convicted and sen­tenced both the appellants as aforesaid.

(3.) THE trial Court was, therefore, wrong in accepting the sole afterthought statement of Town Inspector, R. S. Raghuwanshi on this point without making any reference to the statements of Subhash, P W 2 and Jahidyar Khan, P W 3.