NDPS Section 37 rigours may not apply where only a co-accused confession links the accused.

The petitioner, arrayed as accused No. 6, sought regular bail under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, in a case alleging offences under Sections 20(b)(ii)(C) and 27(a) of the NDPS Act.

Police had seized 20 kg and 640 g of alleged ganja from accused Nos. 1 to 3.

The petitioner was implicated on the basis of their statements that the contraband had been delivered on his instructions; he was arrested during the investigation, and his bail application before the trial court was rejected.

The petitioner submitted that no contraband was seized from him and that the co-accused’s statements were the only material connecting him to the case.

The State opposed bail, citing the petitioner’s earlier similar cases and the ongoing investigation.

Section 483 of the BNSS, 2023, provides the High Court’s jurisdiction to grant regular bail.

Section 37(1)(b) of the NDPS Act imposes restrictions on granting bail for offences within its scope, including the requirement that the court be satisfied there are reasonable grounds for believing the accused is not guilty and is unlikely to commit an offence while on bail.

The alleged offences were under Sections 20(b)(ii)(C) and 27(a) of the NDPS Act.

The judgment does not cite any precedent.

The Court noted that the alleged contraband was recovered from accused Nos. 1 to 3, not from the petitioner, and that the prosecution had collected no material connecting him to the offence apart from the co-accused’s statements.

It also considered the petitioner’s earlier similar cases, observing that his name was not found in the FIRs in those cases and that he had been granted bail in them.

On the material available at that stage, the Court held that the rigour of Section 37(1)(b) could not be applied against the petitioner and that his request for bail should be allowed.

The Karnataka High Court allowed the petition and directed that the petitioner be released on bail in Crime No. 172 of 2026, subject to conditions, including execution of a bond of ₹1,00,000 with two sureties, regular attendance before the trial court, non-interference with witnesses, and monthly attendance at the police station for one year after release.