DEEPAK Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard counsel for the parties.The petitioner seeks regular bail in a case registered against him for the offence under Section 15 of the NDPS Act.The FIR (P1) has been registered against the petitioner on the statement of SI Gurnam Singh who along with other Police officials was present at Gate Ist Class, Railway Station, Ludhiana, for checking of suspicious persons. A secret information was received that Rajan Lal, Deepak (petitioner) and Narinder Singh were doing the business of smuggling poppy-husk. On the said date i.e. 13.11.2008, the said three persons had loaded bags of feed in a truck and poppy-husk bags were concealed under the said bags. They were coming from Gwalior to go to Jalandhar on the Sahnewal-Kohara road and if a check post between Railway Station, Dhandari Kalan, Sahnewal was set up, then the persons could be apprehended. The truck, as intimated by the special informer, was apprehended near the Railway Station and after search, 5 bags containing poppy-husk were recovered. The petitioner-Deepak is a juvenile and as per the certificate of the 'Purav Madheyamic Priksha', his date of birth is 12.2.1992. Therefore, on the date of the occurrence, i.e. on 13.11.2008, he was less than 18 years of age. There is no other case registered against him. In terms of Section 12 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 it is provided that when any person accused of a bailable or non-bailable offence, and apparently a juvenile, is arrested or detained or appears or is brought before a Board, such person shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure or in any other law for the time being in force, be released on bail with or without surety but he shall not be so released if there appear reasonable grounds for believing that the release is likely to bring him into association with any known criminal or expose him to moral, physical or psychological danger or that his release would defeat the ends of justice.

(2.) Keeping in view the fact that the petitioner is shown to be less than 18 years of age and a juvenile, besides no other case is shown to be pending against him, therefore, it can be said that while on bail, he shall not indulge in similar activity. Moreover, a check can also be maintained by asking him to furnish an appropriate local surety who shall file an undertaking that while on bail the petitioner shall maintain peace and be of good behaviour.