KULJIT SINGH ALIAS RUBY Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Vide this judgment two appeals bearing No. CRA No.2293 SB of 2008 and CRA No.2458 SB of 2008 will be disposed of as these have arisen out of the same judgment. The appellants were convicted for an offence under Section 15 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act- for short) vide judgment dated 24.10.2008 by the Special Judge, Ludhiana. Vide order of the even date the appellants were sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of ten years and a fine of Rs.1,00,000/- each. Hence, the present appeals.

(2.) Prosecution case, as noticed by the trial Court in para 2 of its judgment, is reproduced herein below:-

(3.) There is no force in the argument raised by learned counsel for the appellants that the accused were not specifically asked as to whether they were in conscious possession of the contraband when their statements under Section 313 Cr.P.C. were recorded. A perusal of the statements of the accused recorded under Section 313 Cr.P.C. reveals that it was specifically put to all the accused that on 1.1.2003, they along with their co-accused were apprehended in the area of village Bahadur Ke Road and 16 bags, each containing 40 kgs of poppy husk, were recovered from their conscious possession which they were carrying in a truck bearing No.PAO 9357.