The Punjab & Haryana High Court while granting bail to a pregnant woman, accused under Section 15 of the NDPS Act observed that although the petitioner is alleged to have been found in possession of the contraband falling in the commercial category but pregnancy of a woman is a special circumstance, in which the gravity of the offence for the time being is liable to be ignored and Section 37 of the NDPS Act cannot be considered to act as a blanket ban on the power of the Court to grant interim bail.
Brief Facts:
The present petition was filed under Section 439 CrPC seeking bail after the petitioner was accused under Section 15 of the NDPS Act. It was alleged that 55 Kg of poppy husk was recovered from the possession of the petitioner and a co-accused along with drug money of Rs.70,000.
Contentions of the Petitioner:
The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner contended that the petitioner had earlier applied for regular bail but at that time she was not aware of her pregnancy and that the earlier petition was dismissed as withdrawn and now she is at the advanced stage of her pregnancy and further submitted that proper treatment of petitioner is required for delivery.
Observations of the Court:
The court stated that although the petitioner is alleged to have been found in possession of the contraband falling in the commercial category but pregnancy of a woman is a special circumstance, in which the gravity of the offence for the time being is liable to be ignored and further giving birth to a child while in custody is not only traumatic to the mother but also to the child to be born because psyche of a child will always have an adverse impact, as and when said child is questioned about his birth.
It was further observed that giving dignity is liable to be ensured to a pregnant woman, in view of fundamental right enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India guaranteeing life and liberty and the interest of the child is also to be taken into consideration, who is not expected to be exposed to the prisons, unless and until it is found that there is grave danger in releasing the petitioner on bail.
Further, it was stated that Section 37 of the NDPS Act creates a fetter on the grant of bail in such like cases involving possession of contraband of commercial category but at the same time when bail is considered on humanitarian grounds, said Section 37 of the NDPS Act cannot be considered to act as a blanket ban on the power of the Court to grant interim bail.
The decision of the Court:
The court allowed the petition and granted interim bail to the petitioner for a period of six months.
Case Title: Amanjot Kaur vs State of Punjab
Coram: Hon’ble Mr. Justice Deepak Gupta
Case No.: CRM-M-60285-2023 (O&M)
Advocate for the Applicant: Mr. Raj Kumar Gupta
Advocate for the Respondent: Mr. Parneet Singh Pandher
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