Accused In Alleged 3,000-Tablet Nitrazepam Case Gets Bail As Chhattisgarh HC Notes Tablets Were Seized From Co-Accused’s Car

The applicant sought regular bail under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, in a case registered under Section 22(c) of the NDPS Act.

The prosecution alleged that the applicant and two co-accused were apprehended with approximately 3,000 Nitrazepam tablets, weighing 1.68 kg, found in a plastic bag in a car.

The applicant’s first bail application had been withdrawn with liberty to revive it after examination of seizure witnesses.

In the second application, the applicant relied, among other things, on the examination of two witnesses who were declared hostile, the fact that the car belonged to a co-accused, and the absence of criminal antecedents.

The State confirmed that the tablets were seized from the co-accused’s car and did not dispute the absence of antecedents.

Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, provides the basis for the High Court’s consideration of an application for regular bail.

The alleged offence was punishable under Section 22(c) of the NDPS Act.

The order does not cite or discuss any precedent or set out a separate test under the NDPS Act; it records that bail was granted on consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case.

The Court considered the parties’ submissions and the documents accompanying the application.

It noted that the alleged tablets had been seized from a car owned by a co-accused, rather than from the applicant’s exclusive possession, and that the applicant had no criminal antecedents.

On those circumstances, and without expressing any view on the merits, the Court found it appropriate to grant bail.

The order also set out consequences for specified defaults and directed that a certified copy be sent to the trial court.