Punjab-Haryana High Court
Amit Kumar vs State Of Haryana on 5 September, 2023
Neutral Citation No:=2023:PHHC:116883
2023:PHHC:116883
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT
CHANDIGARH
CRM-M-43232-2023 (O&M)
Date of Decision: 05.09.2023
Amit Kumar ... Petitioner
Versus
State of Haryana ... Respondent
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE GURVINDER SINGH GILL
Present:- Mr. G.S. Sharma, Advocate with
Mr. Sita Ram Marvaria, Advocate
for the petitioner.
Mr. Sharad Aggarwal, DAG, Haryana.
*****
FIR No. Dated Police Station Section/s
327 18.12.2020 Sarai Khwaja, 22(c) of NDPS Act
Faridabad,
Haryana
GURVINDER SINGH GILL, J. (Oral)
1. The instant petition has been filed on behalf of the petitioner seeking grant of
regular bail in respect of aforementioned FIR.
2. As per the case of prosecution, the petitioner was apprehended by the police
while in possession of 900 Tramadol Injections.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner has been falsely
implicated in the present case. It has further been submitted that the petitioner
has been behind bars for a substantial period of about 2 years 8 months and
17 days and since the trial is proceeding at snail's pace, the petitioner cannot
be kept behind bars for an indefinite period.
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4. Opposing the petition, learned State counsel has submitted that since it is a
case, wherein the petitioner was caught red-handed while in possession of
'commercial' quantity of contraband, no case for grant of bail is made out.
Learned State counsel has, however, informed that the petitioner as on date
has been behind bars since the last about 2 years 8 months and 17 days. It has
also been informed that the petitioner is not involved in any other case.
Learned State counsel has informed that till date only 03 out of the cited 12
PWs has been examined.
5. This Court has considered the rival submissions addressed before this Court.
6. Since the petitioner seeks grant of bail mainly on account of long custody, it
is apposite to refer to a few judgments of Hon'ble Supreme Court in this
regard wherein Hon'ble Supreme Court has granted the concession of bail
solely on ground of long custody :-
Case Date of Title of case Period which the
Number Decision accused had
undergone when
granted bail by
Hon'ble Supreme
Court.
Criminal 07.02.2020 Chitta Biswas @ Subhas 1 year and 7 months
Appeal No. Vs. the State of West
245/2020 Bengal
Criminal 12.10.2020 Amit Singh Moni Vs. 2 years and 7 months
Appeal No. State of Himachal
668/2020 Pradesh
Special 01.08.2022 Nitish Adhikary @ 1 year and 7 months
Leave to Bapan Vs. the State of
Appeal West Bengal
(Crl.) No.
5769/2022
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Special 04.08.2022 Shariful Islam @ Sarif 1 year and 6 months
Leave to Vs. the State of West
Appeal Bengal
(Crl.) No.
4173 of
Criminal 05.08.2022 Gopal Krishna Patra @ 2 years 1 month and
Appeal No. Gopalrusma Vs. Union 17 days
1169 of of India
Special 22.08.2022 Mohammad Salman About 2 years
Leave to Hanif Shaikh Vs. the
Appeal State of Gujarat
(Crl.) No.
5530-2022
Criminal 22.11.2022 Karnail Singh Vs. The 1 Year and 8 months
Appeal No. State of Odisha
2027-2022
Special 25.11.2022 Karim Adaldar Vs. The 10 months
Leave to State of West Bengal
Appeal
(Crl.) No.
8653-2022
7. Hon'ble Supreme Court in yet another judgment dated 25.1.2023 arising out
of SLP No.6690-2022 titled Dheeraj Kumar Shukla Vs. State of Uttar
Pradesh has granted bail in a case registered under the NDPS Act where the
accused alongwith co-accused was found in possession of 'commercial'
quantity of 'Ganja' and had been behind bars since the last two and a half
years while observing that in the absence of any criminal antecedents, the
conditions of Section 37 of the NDPS Act could be dispensed with at that
stage, particularly when there was delay in conclusion of trial.
8. Keeping in view the totality of the facts and circumstances of the case,
particularly long custody of the petitioner and also the fact that the petitioner
is having a clean record and that conclusion of trial is likely to consume
time inasmuch as only 03 out of 12 cited PWs have been examined so far, the
petition merits acceptance and is hereby accepted.
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9. The petition, as such, is allowed and the petitioner is ordered to be released
on regular bail on his furnishing bail bonds/surety bonds to the satisfaction of
learned trial Court/Chief Judicial Magistrate/Duty Magistrate concerned.
10. It is, however, directed that in case the petitioner is found to be indulging in
similar offence again, the prosecution would be at liberty to move an
application for cancellation of bail before this Court.
(GURVINDER SINGH GILL)
JUDGE
05.09.2023
Ajay Goswami
Whether speaking /reasoned Yes / No
Whether Reportable Yes / No
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