[Cites 11, Cited by 0]
Punjab-Haryana High Court
Mahender Singh Alias Raju vs State Of Haryana on 29 January, 2026
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT
CHANDIGARH
226 CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
Date of decision : 29.01.2026
Mahender Singh @Raju
..... Petitioner
VERSUS
State of Haryana
..... Respondent
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURYA PARTAP SINGH
Present : Mr. Kuldeep Singh Siwach, Advocate for
Mr. Amit Choudhary, Advocate for the petitioner.
Ms. Deepali Verma, Asst. A.G. Haryana.
*****
SURYA PARTAP SINGH, J. (oral)
For the commission of offence punishable under Section 22(c),
and 27-A of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, hereinafter
referred to as 'NDPS Act', the FIR No.204 dated 09.08.2024, has been
lodged in Police Station Sadar Ratia, District Fatehabad. The petitioner is
being prosecuted for the commission of abovementioned offence and he has
been arrested. The petitioner is in custody and, therefore, craving for bail.
2. In nutshell, the facts emanating from record are that the FIR of
this case came into being when a police party headed by 'SI Jagga Singh'
was on patrolling duty, and near Lalli Bus Stand, a reliable source gave him
a tip-off that Mahender Singh @Raju was engaged in the business of
smuggling intoxicating tablets, and that he had purchased a large quantity of
intoxicating medicines, and was waiting for a conveyance at Dadupur Road.
According to above-named police officer, on the basis of abovementioned
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
information, the abovementioned person was apprehended and on search of
his person 22 bottles of codeine containing 100 ml each, total weighing 2 kg
938 gms, were recovered.
3. It has been further alleged by the prosecution that on recovery
of abovementioned contraband, necessary formalities with regard to seizure
& sealing of contraband, lodging of FIR, and arrest of the accused were
performed, and further investigation taken up.
4. The learned State Counsel has filed custody certificate of the
petitioner. The same be taken on record. However, no formal reply has been
filed by the State and the learned State counsel has opted to orally oppose
the present petition.
5. Heard.
6. It has been contended on behalf of petitioner that the petitioner
is innocent, who has been falsely implicated in the present case. According
to learned counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner has already served
sentence for a period of more than 01 year and 05 months, and that trial is
taking place at a very slow, as out of 22 prosecution witnesses, not even a
single witness has been examined so far. As per learned counsel for the
petitioner since the trial is not likely to be concluded in near future, the
petitioner is entitled for the benefit of bail.
7. In support of his abovementioned contention, the learned
counsel for the petitioner has referred the case, titled as 'Aijul Sheikh V/s
State of West Bengal' SLP(Crl) No.19312/2025, wherein the Hon'ble
Supreme Court of India has accorded the benefit of bail to an accused, who
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
was in custody for a period of one year and 01 month, and was found in
possession of 700 bottles of cough syrup. According to learned counsel for
the petitioner, in the abovementioned case, the benefit of bail was accorded
to the accused because the charge-sheet in that case had already been filed
and he was in custody for long period.
8. The learned State Counsel has controverted the
abovementioned arguments. According to learned State Counsel, there are
specific allegations against the petitioner that he was in possession of
contraband. As per learned State Counsel, the quantity of contraband
recovered in this case comes within the ambit of 'commercial quantity', and
therefore, unless the twin conditions enshrined under Section-37 of NDPS
Act are satisfied, the benefit of bail cannot be afforded to the petitioner.
9. The record has been perused carefully.
10. As far as the principles governing the benefit of bail in a case
related to NDPS Act, are concerned, the principles of law laid down by the
Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of 'Mohd. Muslim @ Hussain v. State'
(NCT of Delhi), 2023 SCC OnLine SC 352 are relevant, wherein the
Hon'ble Supreme Court has held that grant of bail on account of undue delay
in trial cannot be said to be fettered under Section-37 of the NDPS Act,
given the imperative of Section 436-A which is applicable to offences under
the Act.
11. In this regard it is also relevant to mention here that the Hon'ble
Supreme Court of India in the case of 'Manmandal and Another v. State of
West Bengal', Special Leave Petition (Criminal) No.8656 of 2023 decided
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
on 14.09.2023 and 'Rabi Prakash v. State of Odisha', 2023 SCC Online SC
1109, extended the benefit of bail to the accused, who had been incarcerated
for a period of almost 2-3 years and the trial was likely to take considerable
time. The above-mentioned benefit has been given by observing that
prolonged incarceration generally militates against the most precious
fundamental right guaranteed under Article-21 of the Constitution, and in
such a situation, the constitutional principles must override the statutory
embargo contained under Section-37 of the NDPS Act.
12. In addition to above, in a recently pronounced verdict in the
case of 'Santosh Pawar Vs. State of Chhattishgarh & Anr.' Criminal Appeal
No.4883/2025, the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India observed that rigors of
Section 37 of NDPS Act will not be a bar for considering the case of an
accused for bail as it comes with a condition that the prosecution would
press for an early completion of trial. In the above-mentioned case the
Hon'ble Supreme Court of India held that appellant who was being
prosecuted for being in possession of commercial quantity of narcotic
substance, was entitled for bail in view of her incarceration for a period of
19 months.
13. Similarly in another case i.e. in the case of 'Satender Kumar
Antil v. Central Bureau of Investigation' (2022) 10 SCC 51 prolonged
incarceration and inordinate delay engaged the attention of the Hon'ble
Supreme Court of India, which considered the correct approach towards bail,
with respect to several enactments, including Section 37 NDPS Act. The
Hon'ble Supreme Court of India expressed the opinion that Section 436A of
the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 [which requires inter alia the accused to
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
be enlarged on bail if the trial is not concluded within specified periods]
would apply in such cases.
14. In the case of 'Ismail Khan @ Pathan vs. State of Rajasthan'
Criminal Appeal No.4911 of 2025 with regard to recovery of commercial
quantity of narcotic substance the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India accorded
the benefit of bail to the accused in view of prolonged incarceration for a
period of 02 years and 08 months of the accused.
15. The similar benefit has been taken in another appeal i.e. SLP
No.15699-2025 titled as 'Ebrahim @ Ibrahim SK vs. The State of West
Bengal' and in the case of 'Pamesh Arora vs. UT Chandigarh' Criminal
Appeal No.4872 of 2025.
16. In the case of 'Hasanujjaman & Ors. V/s The State of West
Bengal' SLP (Crl.) No.3221 of 2023, the benefit of bail has been accorded
by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India to an accused, who was found in the
possession of 115 bottles of phensedyl, by observing that:-
a) the petitioner was in custody for a period of one year and three
months;
b) the investigation in that case was complete and charge-sheet
had been filed, but charges were yet to be framed;
c) the conclusion of trial would take some time; and
d) the petitioner had no criminal antecedents.
In view of abovementioned prevailing factors, it has been
observed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India that there is substantial
compliance of Section-37 of NDPS Act.
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
17. Similarly, in the case of 'Nandlal Mondal @Abhay Mondal V/s
The State of West Bengal' SLP(Crl) No.12788/2023, the Hon'ble Supreme
Court of India afforded the benefit of bail to the accused, who was found in
possession of 10,000 ml of codeine phosphate, and was in custody for a
period of one and a half year, by considering that conclusion of trial would
take long time.
18. If the facts and circumstances of the present case are analyzed
in the light of above-mentioned principles of law, it transpires that:-
19. In the present case, the principles of law laid down by the
Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of "Dataram versus State of Uttar
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
Pradesh and another", 2018(2) R.C.R. (Criminal) 131, are relevant, wherein
it has been observed that "a fundamental postulate of criminal jurisprudence
is the presumption of innocence, meaning thereby that a person is believed
to be innocent until found guilty. However, there are instances in our
criminal law where a reverse onus has been placed on an accused with
regard to some specific offences but that is another matter and does not
detract from the fundamental postulate in respect of other offences. Yet
another important facet of our criminal jurisprudence is that the grant of bail
is the general rule and putting a person in jail or in a prison or in a correction
home (whichever expression one may wish to use) is an exception.
Unfortunately, some of these basic principles appear to have been lost sight
of with the result that more and more persons are being incarcerated and for
longer periods. This does not do any good to our criminal jurisprudence or to
our society. There is no doubt that the grant or denial of bail is entirely the
discretion of the judge considering a case but even so, the exercise of
judicial discretion has been circumscribed by a large number of decisions
rendered by this Court and by every High Court in the country. Yet,
occasionally there is a necessity to introspect whether denying bail to an
accused person is the right thing to do on the facts and in the circumstances
of a case".
20. The principles laid down by the Hon'ble the Supreme Court of
India in the case of 'Satender Kumar Antil Vs. Central Bureau of
Investigation and Another', (2022) 10 SCC 51, are also relevant in this case.
In the abovementioned case, it has been observed that "the rate of conviction
in criminal cases in India is abysmally low. It appears to us that this factor
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
weighs on the mind of the Court while deciding the bail applications in a
negative sense. Courts tend to think that the possibility of a conviction being
nearer to rarity, bail applications will have to be decided strictly, contrary to
legal principles. We cannot mix up consideration of a bail application, which
is not punitive in nature with that of a possible adjudication by way of trial.
On the contrary, an ultimate acquittal with continued custody would be a
case of grave injustice".
21. Recently, in the case of 'Tapas Kumar Palit Vs. State of
Chhattisgarh', 2025 SCC Online SC 322, the Hon'ble Supreme Court of
India has observed that "if an accused is to get a final verdict after
incarceration of six to seven years in jail as an undertrial prisoner, then,
definitely, it could be said that his right to have a speedy trial under Article
21 of the Constitution has been infringed". It has also been observed by the
Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in the abovementioned case that "delays are
bad for the accused and extremely bad for the victims, for Indian society and
for the credibility of our justice system, which is valued. Judges are the
masters of their Courtrooms and the Criminal Procedure Code provides
many tools for the Judges to use in order to ensure that cases proceed
efficiently".
22. To elucidate further, this Court is conscious of the basic and
fundamental principle of law that right to speedy trial is a part of reasonable,
fair and just procedure enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of
India. This constitutional right cannot be denied to the accused as mandated
CRM-M-53037-2025 (O&M)
by Hon'ble Apex court in "Balwinder Singh versus State of Punjab and
Another", 2024 SCC Online SC 4354.
23. If the cumulative effect of all the abovementioned factors,
involved in the instant case, is taken into consideration, it leads to a
conclusion that the petitioner is entitled for the benefit of bail, and that the
present petition deserves to be allowed.
24. Accordingly, without commenting anything on the merits of the
case, the present petition is hereby allowed. The petitioner is hereby ordered
to be released on bail on his furnishing personal bond and surety bond(s) to
the satisfaction of learned trial Court. However the abovementioned
concession shall be subject to following conditions:-
(i) that the petitioner shall not directly or indirectly make any
inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with
the facts of the case, so as to dissuade him to disclose such facts
to the Court or to any other authority.
(ii) that the petitioner shall at the time of execution of bond, furnish
the address to the Court concerned and shall notify the change
in address to the trial Court, till the final decision of the trial;
and
(iii) that the petitioner shall not leave India without prior permission
of the trial Court.
(SURYA PARTAP SINGH)
JUDGE
29.01.2026
Gaurav Thakur
Whether speaking / reasoned Yes/No
Whether Reportable Yes/No
