Mohamad Daud vs State Of Haryana
2023 Latest Caselaw 19038 P&H

                                                        Neutral Citation No:=2023:PHHC:140305




                                                               2023:PHHC:140305
CRM-M-43794-2023                                                             -1-


201          IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
                       AT CHANDIGARH
                                            CRM-M-43794-2023
                                        DECIDED ON: 03.11.2023

MOHAMAD DAUD                                                    .....PETITIONER

                                 VERSUS

STATE OF HARYANA                                               .....RESPONDENT

CORAM:       HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VIKRAM AGGARWAL.

Present:     Mr. Saurabh Sharma, Advocate for the petitioner.

             Mr. Deepak Bhardwaj, D.A.G., Haryana.

VIKRAM AGGARWAL, J

1. This is the second petition moved under Section 439 of the Code of

Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short "Cr.P.C.") for the grant of regular bail to the

petitioner in FIR No.724 dated 30.12.2022 registered under Sections20,

20B(ii)(c), 58(2) and 29 of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances

Act, 1985 (for short 'NDPS Act') at Police Station Ladwa, District Kurukshetra.

2. On 30.12.2022, upon receipt of a secret information, a police team

intercepted one Sandeep who was stated to be involved in selling of Charas

(Sulpha). Upon his personal search (after complying with the statutory

provisions), 1kg 150 grams of Charas was recovered. Upon interrogation, he

named one Harvinder Singh @ Golu as the person from whom he had purchased

the contraband. The said Harvinder Singh @ Golu was arrested who then named

one Aman. Upon arrest, Aman named the present petitioner. The present

petitioner was accordingly arrested on 16.01.2023 and is in custody since then.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner has

been falsely implicated. It was contended that no recovery had been made from

the petitioner. It was further submitted that the petitioner is in custody since

16.01.2023; the petitioner was not named in the FIR; the petitioner was not

named even by the person who was arrested with the contraband and was

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nominated as an accused on the basis of a statement of a co-accused who himself

was not arrested from the spot; the petitioner had himself joined investigation but

was wrongly arrested by the Investigating Agency; final report under Section 173

Cr.P.C. was submitted on 19.06.2023; trial will still take a sufficiently long time

and, therefore, no useful purpose would be served by keeping the petitioner in

custody any longer. It was further contended that one more person namely Khalil

was also arrayed as an accused and the allegation was that the present petitioner

had purchased the contraband from him. The said Khalil moved a petition for

anticipatory bail before this Court and a Coordinate Bench has granted interim

protection in CRM-M-46301-2023 titled as 'Khalil Vs. State of Haryana'.

Reliance was also placed by learned counsel upon the judgment of the Hon'ble

Apex Court in the case of 'Tofan Singh Vs. State of Tamil Nadu', 2020 AIR

(Supreme Court) 5592.

4. On the other hand, learned counsel representing the State of

Haryana opposed the bail application stating that the petitioner is a habitual

offender. It was submitted that two other cases stand registered against the

petitioner under the NDPS Act out of which, in one case i.e. FIR No.293 dated

12.06.2007 registered under Section 18/20 of the NDPS Act, the petitioner was

convicted and was sentenced to undergo imprisonment of 13 years. It was

submitted that if the petitioner is released on bail, he may try to influence and

threaten the witnesses and may also abscond.

5. I have considered the submissions made by learned counsel for the

parties. Admittedly, co-accused Sandeep was found in possession of Charas

weighing 1kg 150 grams and was accordingly arrested on 30.12.2022. On

successive disclosure statements by different co-accused i.e. Sandeep, Harvinder

Singh @ Golu and Aman, the present petitioner was nominated as an accused.

No recovery was made from him. He was arrested on 16.01.2023 and is

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undergoing incarceration since then. Admittedly, he has been arrayed as an

accused on the basis of the disclosure statement of a co-accused in pursuance to

which no recovery was made. More than nine months have elapsed. Final report

under Section 173 Cr.P.C. has been submitted. Trial will still take a sufficiently

long time. The pendency of two other cases against the petitioner would not be

relevant for the purposes of grant of bail in the present case especially since the

recovery in the present case has not been made from the petitioner. Co-accused

Khalil, from whom the petitioner is stated to have purchased the contraband, has

already been granted interim protection by a Co-ordinate Bench in CRM-M-

46301-2023 titled as 'Khalil Vs. State of Haryana' and the same is now pending

for 06.11.2023. In the considered opinion of this Court, no further incarceration

is required to be undergone by the petitioner. The petitioner can be put to

stringent conditions but, in the considered opinion of this Court, his liberty

should not be curtailed any further.

In view of the aforementioned facts and circumstances, the present

petition is allowed. The petitioner is ordered to be released on regular bail on his

furnishing bail/surety bonds to the satisfaction of the concerned trial Court/Chief

Judicial Magistrate/Duty Magistrate Kurukshetra. However, nothing observed

hereinbefore shall be construed to be an opinion on the merits of the case.

                                                  (VIKRAM AGGARWAL)
03.11.2023                                              JUDGE
Prince Chawla

                Whether speaking/reasoned         Yes/No
                Whether reportable                Yes/No




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