[Cites 4, Cited by 0]
Chattisgarh High Court
Ravi Shankar Lodhi vs State Of Chhattisgarh on 9 April, 2026
1
Digitally
signed by
BHOLA
BHOLA NATH
NATH KHATAI
KHATAI Date:
2026.04.10
15:38:07
+0530
2026:CGHC:16280
NAFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
CRA No. 1924 of 2025
1 - Ravi Shankar Lodhi S/o Chobaram Lodhi Aged About 32
Years R/o Budena, P.S. Gotegaon, Distt. Narsinghpur, M.P.
2 - Manu Keunt @ Sonu S/o Dudhnath Keunt Aged About 20
Years R/o Salepada, Sahipal, P.S. Khariyar, Distt. Nuapada,
Odisha.
... Appellants
versus
State Of Chhattisgarh Through Station House Officer, P.S.
G.R.P. Raipur, Distt. Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
... Respondent(s)
For Appellants : Mr. Vimlesh Bajpai, Advocate
For Respondent : Mr. Akhilesh Kumar, Govt. Advocate
Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal
Judgment on Board
09/04/2026
1. The present appeal under Section 415(2) of BNSS, 2023 has
been filed challenging the judgment of conviction and order
of sentence dated 08.09.2025 passed by learned Special
Judge (NDPS Act), Raipur, District Raipur (C.G.), in Special
Criminal Case (NDPS) No.71/2023 whereby both the
appellants have been convicted and sentenced as under :
Conviction Sentence
Rigorous imprisonment for 10 years
U/s 20(b)(ii)(B) of with fine of Rs.1,00,000/-, in default
the NDPS Act of payment of fine, additional RI for 2
years.
2. The case of prosecution, in short, is that on 02.03.2023, a
secret information was received by Sub Inspector A. Z.
Chaudhary, R.P.F. Raipur to the extent that two persons
possessing Ganja were waiting for a train near the toilet on
Platform No.2 at Raipur railway station. On the basis of
the said information, a proceeding as is required under the
NDPS Act was initiated by PW-10 A. Z. Chaudhary, the
Sub-Inspector, R.P.F. Post, Raipur. Intimation in this
regard was immediately sent to the higher officers. The
police team headed by PW-10, along with two independent
witnesses, went to the spot and conducted a search. From
the possession of appellant No.1 Ravi Shankar Lodhi, a
black airbag was recovered containing seven packets of
cannabis (Ganja) wrapped in brown tape, weighing a total
of 10 kg. Similarly, from appellant No.2 Manu Keunt,
another black airbag was seized containing seven packets
of Ganja wrapped in brown tape, also weighing 10 kg. In
total, 14 packets containing 20 kg of Ganja were recovered
and seized from the appellants.
3. So as to hold the appellants guilty, the prosecution has
examined as many as 11 witnesses and exhibited 41
documents. The statements of the appellants were also
recorded under Section 313 of the Cr.P.C. in which they
denied the circumstances appearing against them and
pleaded innocence and false implication in the case.
4. The trial Court, after appreciation of oral and documentary
evidence on record, vide impugned judgment dated
08.09.2025 found the appellants guilty for the offence
punishable under Section 20(b)(ii)(B) of NDPS Act and
accordingly, convicted and sentenced them under the said
section as mentioned in the opening paragraph of this
judgment leading to the filing of this appeal.
5. Learned counsel for the appellants submits that he is not
pressing this appeal so far as it relates to the conviction
part of the judgment and would confine his argument to the
sentence part thereof only. According to him, appellant
No.1 Ravi Shankar Lodhi has already remained in custody
for about 11 months & 9 days and appellant No.2 has
remained in custody for about 2 years, 4 months & 15
days. They are poor persons and have no previous criminal
record. Hence, considering all theses facts, the sentence
imposed upon the appellants may be reduced to the period
already undergone by them.
6. Per contra, learned counsel appearing for the State,
supporting the impugned judgment, opposed the
arguments advanced on behalf of the counsel for appellants
and prayed for dismissal of the appeal.
7. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the
record.
8. Having gone through the material available on record and
the statements of Sub Inspector A. Z. Chaudhary (PW-10),
Head Constable Bir Kishore Toppo (PW-4), Sub Inspector L.
S. Rajpur (PW-7), FSL report Ex.P-31 and the proceedings
conducted by the Investigating Officer A. Z. Chaudhary
(PW-10), the involvement of the appellants in the crime in
question is clearly established. This Court does not find any
illegality in the findings recorded by the Trial Court
regarding conviction of the appellants for the offence
punishable under Section 20(b)(ii)(B) of the NDPS Act.
9. As regards sentence, in the matter of Mohammad
Giasuddin v. State of Andhra Pradesh reported in (1977)
3 SCC 287, Hon'ble Supreme Court has observed that if
you are to punish a man retributively, you must injure him.
If you are to reform him, you must improve him and, men
are not improved by injuries and held in para-9 as follows:
"9. Western jurisprudes and 'sociologists, from
their own angle have struck a like note. Sir
Samual Romilly, critical of the brutal penalties in
the then Britain, said in 1817 :
"The laws of England are written in blood".
Alfieri has suggested : 'society prepares the
crime, the criminal commits it'. George
Nicodotis, Director of Criminological Research
Centre, Athens, Greece, maintains that 'Crime is
the result of the lack of the right kind of
education.' It is thus plain that crime is a
pathological aberration, that the criminal can
ordinarily be redeemed, that the State has to
rehabilitate rather than avenge. The sub-culture
that leads to anti-social behaviour has to be
countered not by undue cruelty but by re-
culturisation. Therefore, the focus of interest in
penology is the individual, and goal is salvaging
him for society. The infliction of harsh and
savage punishment is thus a relic of past and
regressive times. The human today views
sentencing as a process of reshaping a person
who has deteriorated into criminality and the
modern community has a primary stake in the
rehabilitation of the offender as a means of
social defense. We, therefore consider a
therapeutic, rather than an in 'terrorem'
outlook, should prevail in our criminal courts,
since brutal incarceration of the person merely
produces laceration of his mind. In the words of
George Bernard Shaw : 'If you are to punish a
man retributively, you must injure him. If you
are to reform him, you must improve him and,
men are not improved by injuries'. We may
permit ourselves the liberty to quote from Judge
Sir Jeoffrey Streatfield : "If you are going to have
anything to do with the criminal Courts, you
should see for yourself the conditions under
which prisoners serve their sentences."
10. In the light of the decision of the Supreme Court in the case
of Mohammad Giasuddin (supra) and keeping in view the
facts that Appellant No.1, Ravi Shankar Lodhi, has
remained in custody for approximately 11 months and 9
days while Appellant No.2, Manu Keunt, has remained in
custody for about 2 years, 4 months and 15 days, as per
the arrest memo Exs. P-15 & 16, appellant No.1 has
studied up to 8th class and is a farmer by profession while
appellant No.2 has studied up to 5th Class and works as a
labourer, no criminal antecedent of the appellants is
recorded and also considering the facts and
circumstances of the case, this Court opines that ends of
justice would be served if the appellants' sentence is
reduced from 10 years to 2½ years.
11. Accordingly, the conviction of the appellants under Section
20(b)(ii)(B) of the NDPS Act is maintained but their jail
sentence is reduced from 10 years to 2 ½ years. However,
the fine amount and its default stipulation imposed by the
trial Court shall remain intact.
12. The appellants are reported to be in jail. The period of
imprisonment already undergone by the appellants shall be
set off against the sentence imposed by this Court today.
13. Consequently, the Appeal is partly allowed to the extent
indicated hereinabove.
14. Let a certified copy of this judgment along with the original
record be transmitted forthwith to the trial Court
concerned. A copy of this judgment be also transmitted to
the concerned Jail Superintendent where the appellants are
serving their sentence, for information and necessary
action.
Sd/-
(Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal)
JUDGE
Khatai
