KIZAKKEKALAYIL ANUJIKUMAR ANUJITH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a bail application U/S.483 of BNSS by the petitioner for grant of bail in connection with F. No. VIII(48)2Cus(P)/Seizure of Marijuana (H.W.)/BPIA/2025 corresponding to TR Case No.23 of 2025 pending in the file of learned District & Sessions Judge, Bhubaneswar for commission of offences punishable U/Ss.20(b)(ii)(C)/23/29 of NDPS Act, on the main allegation of possessing 3.990Kgs. of Hydroponic Weed/Marijuana(Ganja).

(2.) Heard Mr.Pratik Nayak, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr.Sudipto Panda, learned CGC in the matter and perused the record.

(3.) In the course of argument, a question comes before this Court that whether the quantity of Contraband article seized in this case is commercial quantity or intermediate quantity. According to learned CGC, since the Contraband article comes within the purview at serial No. 150 of Scheduled of the notification specifying small quantity and commercial quantity, the chemical product of the Contraband article is Tetrahydrocannabinol and, therefore, anything more than 50Grams of such compound comes under commercial quantity, but Mr.Pratik Nayak reaffirms that the Contraband article seized in this case belongs to Cannabis Group and thereby, the quantity of Contraband article to be commercial quantity must be more than 20 Kgs. No doubt, the Contraband article namely, Marijuana has not been defined in anywhere in the NDPS Act, but according to the Chambers Dictionary 12th Edition, Marijuana as noun is the hemp plant (Cannabis Sativa); its dried flowers and leaves smoked as intoxicant. Similarly, Marijuana is defined in Oxford Dictionary as a noun a drug made from the dried flowers of the cannabis plant, which is smoked or consumed as a psychoactive (mind-altering) drug and the same also known as Ganja and thereby, Marijuana is a product of Cannabis which is further strengthened and evidenced from the prosecution papers in which the Contraband article has been described as Marijuana(Ganja). Be that as it may, Cannabis has been defined in Sec. 2(iii)(b) of the NDPS Act which is reproduced as under:-