JAI SINGH Vs. STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner has approached this Court seeking bail in case FIR No. 53 of 2021, dtd. 12/5/2021, registered in Police Station Padhar, District Mandi, H.P., under Sec. 18 of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (for short "NDPS Act").

(2.) Status report stands filed. Record was also made available.

(3.) It is stated in the status report that petitioner has joined the investigation and nothing is to be recovered from him. According to status report Police party during patrolling on 12/5/2021, noticed illegal cultivation of opium whereupon Pradhan Gram Panchyat, Patwari Halka concerned were informed and summoned on the spot. Patwari Soma Devi expressed her inability to reach on the spot, as she was having six months old baby and had joined duties two days before after availing maternity leave, but she informed about it to Beat Kanungo, who came on the spot accompanied by his assistant alongwith record. Because of bad weather and inability to read the revenue record, Kanungo could not identify Khasra numbers of the land in reference in which about seven lakh opium plants were found cultivated. All plants were uprooted and after keeping 10 plants as sample, rest of plants were destroyed on the spot. Later on, on the basis of jamabandi, it came in the notice of Police that opium plants were cultivated on the land comprised in Khasra Nos. 2923 to 2953 by all owners of the said land, who were not found in their houses or other places, as they had fled from the spot to avoid their arrest.