RAVINDER SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Present petition has been filed praying for the grant of regular bail to the petitioner in case bearing FIR No.36, dtd. 13/5/2024, under Ss. 21/21-C, 29, 61, 85 of NDPS Act, 1985, registered at Police Station Valtoha, District Tarn Taran, Punjab (Annexure P-1).

(2.) Succinctly the facts of the case are that the police party, while on patrolling on 13/5/2024, received a secret information to the effect that Sukhbir Singh, Ravinder Singh (petitioner) and Mandeep Singh @ Manna were involved in selling the contraband, i.e. heroin. It was informed that all three persons were to come in their car bearing registration No.PB-05-AF-9999 and in case of barricading, they could be arrested along with the contraband. On receiving the secret information, the FIR was registered and the barricading was laid. The police saw a car, as informed in the secret information, in which 03 persons were travelling and thus was stopped. On asking, they disclosed their names as Sukhbir Singh, Ravinder Singh (petitioner) and Mandeep Singh @ Manna. They were suspected to be carrying some contraband. On giving the offer, the search was conducted. On conducting the search, 260 grams of heroin was recovered from Ravinder Singh (petitioner) and 255 grams of heroin was recovered from Mandeep Singh, whereas from the search of Sukhbir Singh, no contraband was recovered. They failed to produce any licence regarding the conscious possession of the same and thus all three persons were arrested on the spot. The samples taken were sent to the FSL. The petitioner approached the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge, Tarn Taran praying for the grant of bail. However, after hearing both the sides finding no merit in the same, the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Tarn Taran declined the petition filed by the petitioner vide order dtd. 27/8/2025. Hence being aggrieved, the petitioner is before this Court by way of filing the present petition praying for the grant of regular bail.

(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioner has vehemently contended that the petitioner has been falsely implicated in the present case. He has submitted that FIR in the present case has been registered on the basis of secret information, however there is a violation of mandatory provisions of Sec. 42 of NDPS Act. He has submitted that there is a violation of provisions of Sec. 50 of NDPS Act as well. He has submitted that the alleged recovery effected from the petitioner is 260 grams of heroin, which is marginally above the commercial quantity. He has submitted that co-accused of the petitioner, namely, Lovepreet Singh, Sukhbir Singh @ Sukha and Manpreet Singh @ Manna, have already been granted bail by this Court vide orders dtd. 31/1/2025, 7/7/2025 and 28/8/2025, respectively, passed in CRM-M-63258-2024, CRM-M-32326-2025 and CRM-M-245412025 and thus, case of the petitioner is at par with those of the co-accused. He has submitted that in the facts and circumstances when the co-accused of the petitioner have been granted bail, the petitioner deserves to be granted bail.