Satyendra Kewat vs The State Of Madhya Pradesh

NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2026:MPHC-JBP:68368
1 MCRC-39461-2026
IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH
AT JABALPUR

BEFORE
HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE AJAY KUMAR NIRANKARI
st
ON THE 1 OF SEPTEMBER, 2026
MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 39461 of 2026
SATYENDRA KEWAT
Versus
THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH
Appearance:
Shri Saurabh Shrivastava - counsel for the applicant
Shri Naman Mishra - Panel Lawyer for State
ORDER
This is first bail application filed by the applicant under Section 482 of
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for grant of anticipatory bail
relating to FIR/Crime No.453/2025 registered at Police Station- Chorhata
District Rewa(M.P.) for the offence punishable under Sections 8, 21, 22, 25,
25-A of NDPS Act and Section 5/13 of M.P. Drug Control Act.
2. As per the prosecution case, the police allegedly seized 151 bottles
of narcotic cough syrup, each containing 100 ml and allegedly containing
Codeine Phosphate from vehicle No.M.P.17 CA 3942.
3. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that there is not even an
iota of evidence on record indicating the involvement of the present
applicant in the alleged offence. There is no specific allegation, overt act or
other cogent material connecting the applicant with the commission of the
alleged offence. The present applicant has been falsely implicated during the
Signature Not Verified
Signed by: SUSHMA
KUSHWAHA
Signing time: 08-09-2026
11:50:02

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course of investigation. The allegations levelled against the applicant are

based merely upon the prosecution version, which is yet to be established in
accordance with law, and there is no independent or substantive material
available on record to establish his involvement. Mere seizure of 151 bottles
of cough syrup allegedly containing Codeine Phosphate does not, by itself,
establish the conscious possession of the said cough syrup by the present
applicant, particularly when there is no specific material demonstrating that
the alleged contraband was recovered from his conscious and exclusive
possession. The alleged cough syrup was not seized from the conscious or
exclusive possession of the applicant. The prosecution case relates to the
recovery of the alleged narcotic cough syrup from a vehicle bearing
Registration No. MP-17-CA-3942. However, the said vehicle had already
been sold and handed over by the applicant to one Aryan Saket pursuant to
an agreement dated 01.08.2025. Under the agreement dated 01.08.2025, the
aforesaid vehicle was completely handed over to Aryan Saket, and it is
specifically agreed that, with effect from 01.08.2025, the entire
responsibility, possession and custody of the vehicle would remain with the
said purchaser. The purchaser had also undertaken to get the vehicle
transferred in his own name. In view of the aforesaid circumstances, the
alleged contraband cannot be attributed to the possession or control of the
present applicant, as the vehicle in question was no longer in his possession
or custody at the relevant point of time. No contraband or other incriminating
material has been recovered from the possession or at the instance of the
present applicant. There is also no material to establish that the applicant had
Signature Not Verified
Signed by: SUSHMA
KUSHWAHA
Signing time: 08-09-2026
11:50:02

NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2026:MPHC-JBP:68368
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knowledge of the alleged contraband or was in conscious possession thereof.

The allegations against the present applicant are false, concocted and without
any substantive basis. No specific role has been attributed to him in relation
to the alleged recovery, transportation or possession of the contraband. The
applicant has no connection whatsoever with the alleged offence. The
present applicant has been unnecessarily implicated in the case, despite the
absence of any recovery or other incriminating circumstance against him.
His implication appears to be an afterthought and is not supported by any
cogent material connecting him with the alleged offence. The applicant has
been implicated by the prosecution agency merely for the sake of implication
and without any rhyme or reason. In the absence of any prima facie material
establishing his involvement or conscious possession of the alleged
contraband, the continued incarceration of the applicant would serve no
useful purpose. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances, the
applicant deserves to be enlarged on bail on such terms and conditions as
this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper in the interest of justice.
4. Learned counsel for the State has opposed the prayer for grant of
bail and submits that the allegations against the present applicant are serious
in nature and relate to the seizure of 151 bottles of narcotic cough syrup from
vehicle bearing Registration No. MP-17-CA-3942. It is further submitted
that the vehicle from which the alleged contraband was recovered is
admittedly connected with the present applicant, who was its registered
owner. Learned counsel for the State further submits that merely because the
contraband was not recovered from the physical possession of the applicant,
Signature Not Verified
Signed by: SUSHMA
KUSHWAHA
Signing time: 08-09-2026
11:50:02

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the same by itself does not completely rule out his involvement in the

alleged offence. The prosecution is required to establish the circumstances
under which the vehicle came to be used for transportation or possession of
the alleged contraband and the role, if any, played by the applicant in the
same. Learned counsel for the State further submits that the alleged recovery
involves 151 bottles of cough syrup containing Codeine Phosphate and,
considering the nature and quantity of the alleged contraband, the allegations
cannot be treated as trivial or insignificant. It is further submitted that the
investigation is still in progress and the investigating agency is required to
ascertain the source of the alleged contraband, its intended destination, the
persons involved in its transportation and the circumstances in which the
vehicle came to be used for carrying the same. Therefore, at this stage, it
cannot be said that there is no prima facie material connecting the applicant
with the alleged offence.
5. Having heard learned counsel for the applicant as well as learned
counsel for the State and having perused the case diary.
6. However, at the stage of consideration of bail, the defence set up
by the applicant regarding the alleged sale and handing over of the vehicle
cannot, in the absence of its proper verification and consideration during
investigation/trial, be accepted as conclusive proof of his complete
disconnection from the vehicle and the alleged offence. It is also well settled
that the question of conscious possession and the precise role of an accused
are matters which depend upon the facts and circumstances of each case and
cannot, at this preliminary stage, be conclusively determined merely on the
Signature Not Verified
Signed by: SUSHMA
KUSHWAHA
Signing time: 08-09-2026
11:50:02

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basis of the applicant's assertion that the vehicle had been handed over to

another person. The alleged recovery of 151 bottles of cough syrup
containing Codeine Phosphate is not, at this stage, a circumstance which can
be brushed aside as insignificant. The alleged agreement of sale executed by
the applicant in favour of the co-accused, by itself, does not constitute a
sufficient ground for grant of bail, particularly when the vehicle from which
the alleged contraband was recovered stood registered in the name of the
applicant.
7. Consequently, considering the nature and gravity of the
allegations, the quantity of the alleged contraband, the fact that the vehicle
from which the alleged recovery was made stood registered in the name of
the applicant, and the fact that the investigation is still in progress, this Court
is not persuaded to hold, at this stage, that there is no prima facie material
requiring further investigation into the applicant's alleged involvement.
8. Accordingly, without expressing any final opinion on the merits
of the case, the present bail application is rejected.
(AJAY KUMAR NIRANKARI)
JUDGE
S /-

Signature Not Verified
Signed by: SUSHMA
KUSHWAHA
Signing time: 08-09-2026
11:50:02