SANTOKH SINGH ALIAS SOKHA Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner was convicted under Section 9 of the Opium Act and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of one year and to pay a fine of Rs. 500.00 and in default of payment of fine, he was further sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two months, by Mr. S. C. Marwaha, Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Phillaur, on 28-9-1988. The appeal against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence was dismissed by Mr. Padam Kumar Jain, Additional Sessions Judge, Jalandhar, on 14-9-1989. Hence, the present criminal revision-petition.

(2.) At the outset, learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that in this case there is no link evidence as to when the sample of poppy-husk was deposited in the Malkhana and to the identity of the sample on the basis of which the report of the Chemical Examiner has been made. It is submitted that the affidavits relied upon by the prosecution were not admissible in evidence for want of proper verification. In order to appreciate the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the prosecution case may be noticed in brief.

(3.) The case of the prosecution is that on 31-10-1985, the police party headed by Head Constable Karamjit Singh, Excise Inspector Bhupinder Singh, Constables Iqbal Singh and Parkash Singh, was going in a Government jeep and had reached on the G.T. Road near Milk Bar in the area of Phillaur, when it received a secret information. In the meanwhile, a truck bearing registration No. PUR 3369 came from the side of Ludhiana which was signalled to stop. The accused was driving the truck and disclosed his name as Santokh Singh alias Sokha son of Phuman Singh. The truck was searched. Eight gunny bags of poppy-husk were recovered which had been hidden under 90 gunny bags containing empty bottles. A sample of 100 grams of poppy-husk was taken out from each bag. The bags were separately sealed with the seal having impression "KS." The seal after use was entrusted to Excise Inspector Randhir Singh. Gunny bags Exhibits P-1 to P-8, truck Exhibit P-9 and 90 gunny bags containing empty bottles were taken into possession vide memo Exhibit P-A. Ruqa Exhibit P-C was sent to the police station, on the basis of which formal First Information Report Exhibit P-C/1 was recorded. During investigation, Chemical Examiner's report Exhibit P-F was obtained.