After 23 Years Of Litigation, P&H HC Upholds 2-Kg Opium Conviction But Cuts 7-Year Term To 9 Months, 7 Days Served

The appellant was convicted under Section 18 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, for possessing 2 kg of opium recovered from beneath a bandage on his right leg, and was sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹50,000, with six months’ further imprisonment in default

On appeal, he did not challenge the conviction but sought reduction of sentence, relying on the time elapsed since the 2003 incident, his nine months and seven days of custody, and the absence of any subsequent prosecution

The State opposed a reduction

The Court considered Section 18 of the NDPS Act, under which the appellant had been convicted

It also proceeded on the stated basis that no minimum sentence had been prescribed for the offence in this case, and that the appellate court could interfere with and reduce the sentence in the circumstances presented

No judicial precedents were cited.

Although the appellant confined his appeal to sentence, the Court reviewed the record and found the prosecution evidence consistent and sufficient to sustain the conviction; it therefore found no basis to interfere with that finding

On sentence, the Court considered the roughly 23-year interval since the incident, the appellant’s nine months and seven days in custody, his lack of any subsequent prosecution, and the absence of a prescribed minimum sentence. It concluded that the sentence already served was adequate to meet the ends of justice

Pending miscellaneous applications, if any, were disposed of accordingly