AVTAR SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AVTAR Singh - Petitioner in Crl.. M.No. 22399 -M of 1997 -and Marjinder Singh alias Jinda - petitioner in Crl. M. No. 20989 -M of 1997 have approached this Court under Section 439 Cr.P.C. for the grant of bail to them in a case under Sections 22/23/29/30 of the N.D.P.S. Act and Section 135 -A of the Customs Act, 1962, pending before the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Amritsar.

(2.) THE case of the prosecution is that on 11.2.1997 at about 4.30 p.m. on information, a joint party of customs preventive staff and Punjab Police raided the house of co -accused Ajaib Singh in Village Malikpur (District Amritsar). Ajaib Singh was absent and his wife -Manjit Kaur, who was present in the house, as informed that her house was to be searched for recovery of narcotics and was given option to be searched before a Gazetted Officer or before a Magistrate. Since she opted to be searched before a Gazetted Officer, a consent memo was accordingly prepared and thereafter the house was searched in the presence of two independent witnesses. During the search of the house, two plastic bags containing 50 packets of Heroin (brown powder /white granules/crystals) were found hidden in the wheat straw lying in the verandah of the said house. After adopting the usual formalities and taking the samples, they were seized.

(3.) MANJIT Kaur allegadly made a voluntary statement on 11.2.1997 before the superintendent of Customs not only admitting the above said recovery, but also the fact that the contraband was brought by her husband - Ajaib Singh and concealed in the wheat straw as mentioned above. She is also alleged to have made a statement on 13.2.1997 and 14.2.1997 also before the Superintendent of Customs. Ajaib Singh is alleged to have made statements on 16th, 21st and 23rd of February, 1997 before the superintendent of Customs, admitting the above said recovery and also about having brought the contra -band to his house and hidden the same in the wheat straw lying in the verandah of his house. He is furthter alleged to have admitted that co - accused -Avinash Kumar Sharma, Ravinder Kumar and Avtar Singh (one of the petitioners herein) visited his house on 11.2.1997 and claimed ownership over the said contraband. Ajaib Singh is also alleged to have admitted that he received Rs. 10,000/ - as consideration from co -accused -Avinash Kumar Sharma for concealing the said goods which were recovered on 11.2.1997. Another co -accused by name, Ravinder Kumar alias Happy allegedly made a statement on 19.2.1997 before the Superintendent of Customs admitting that Avinash Kumar Sharma has links with Jaika, a Pakistani Smuggler, and also having illegally imported three consignments of narcotic from Pakistan which were transported to Delhi by Avinash Kumar Sharma. Ravinder Kumar also allegedly admitted about having smuggled 50 packets of Heroin on the intervening night between 8th and 9th February, 1997 and placed it in the sugarcane field of Ajaib Singh. He is further alleged to have admitted that he accompanied Avinash Kumar Sharma and Avtar Singh to the residence of Ajaib Singh on 11.2.1997 and paid him Rs. 10,000/ -.