Punjab-Haryana High Court

Moshin Ansari vs State Of Punjab on 2 May, 2024

Author: Gurvinder Singh Gill

Bench: Gurvinder Singh Gill

                                                                                  2024:PHHC:060847

                           In The High Court for the States of Punjab and Haryana
                                           At Chandigarh


                                                               CRM-M-8581-2024 (O&M)
                                                               Date of Decision:- 02.05.2024


                           Mohsin Ansari                                            ... Petitioner


                                                           Versus

                           State of Punjab                                          ... Respondent


                CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE GURVINDER SINGH GILL



                Present:-           Mr. Sanjeev Kumar, Advocate, for the petitioner.

                                    Mr. I.P.S.Sabharwal, DAG, Punjab.

                                    *****

                 FIR DATE                   POLICE STATION             OFFENCES
                 NO.
                     133       13.4.2021     City Kharar, SAS Nagar     21 of NDPS Act and Section 25
                                                                        of Arms Act (Section 29 of
                                                                        NDPS Act added later on)


                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. The allegations, in nutshell are that the petitioner was found in

possession of 1 kg of 'Heroin' and .315 bore country made pistol.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that he has falsely been

implicated in the present case. It has been submitted that the

petitioner has been behind bars since the last more than 3 years and

till date no substantial progress has been made in the trial.

CRM-M-8581-2024 (O&M) -2- 2024:PHHC:060847

4. Opposing the petition, learned State counsel has submitted that since

the petitioner was found in conscious possession of 'commercial

quantity' of contraband, no case for grant of bail is made out. It has

been informed that the petitioner stands involved in two more cases

registered under Section 52-A of Prison Act and Section 370 IPC and

67 of I.T. Act. It has been however, been informed that the petitioner,

as on date, has been behind bars since the last more than 3 years.

Learned State counsel has further informed that, in the present case, 3

out of cited 17 PWs have been examined.

5. This Court has considered rival submissions.

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 @ 1 year and 7 months Appeal No. Subhas Vs. 245/2020 the State of West Bengal Criminal 12.10.2020 Amit Singh Moni Vs. 2 years and 7 months Appeal No. State of 668/2020 Himachal Pradesh Special 01.08.2022 Nitish Adhikary @ 1 year and 7 months Leave Bapan Vs. to Appeal the State of West (Crl.) No. Bengal

Special 04.08.2022 Shariful Islam @ Sarif 1 year and 6 months Leave Vs. to Appeal the State of West (Crl.) No. Bengal 4173 of

Criminal 05.08.2022 Gopal Krishna Patra @ 2 years 1 month and 17 Appeal No. Gopalrusma Vs. Union days

CRM-M-8581-2024 (O&M) -3- 2024:PHHC:060847

1169 of of 2022 India Special 22.08.2022 Mohammad Salman About 2 years Leave Hanif to Appeal Shaikh Vs. the State of (Crl.) No. Gujarat 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 25.01.2023

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 the long custody of the petitioner i.e more than 3 years

and the fact that only 3 out of cited 17 PWs have been examined so

far, the petition merits acceptance and is hereby accepted.

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.

CRM-M-8581-2024 (O&M) -4- 2024:PHHC:060847

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.





                02.05.2024                                       ( GURVINDER SINGH GILL)
                mohan                                                      JUDGE

                                    Whether speaking /reasoned       Yes / No

                                    Whether Reportable               Yes / No