CUTTACK: THE Orissa High Court has indicted a trial court for ignoring irregularities during search and seizure operation besides, inconsistencies in prosecution while convicting a person accused in a narcotics case.
The indictment came while setting aside conviction of a person in connection with seizure of 50 kg ganja from a motorcycle that he was riding under Handapa police limits of Angul district over six years back.On May 4, 2016, the Court of Additional Sessions-cum- Special Judge, Angul had convicted Sanjay Kumar Behera under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. The judge sentenced him to 10 years rigorous imprisonment and imposed Rs 1 lakh fine on him. Behera had challenged the trial court order the same year.
The single judge bench of Justice SK Panigrahi allowed the appeal on July 17 after he felt that the trial court in order to reach a quick conclusion, had merely relied upon the evidence of those witnesses who reiterated the prosecution’s case.
Justice Panigrahi observed that the trial court has failed to appreciate the submissions made before it and the legal position in such cases which require a great degree of scrutiny.“The trial court ought to have taken note of the other facts and circumstances of the case which have the quality of a deafening silence and point unerringly at another probability”, Justice Panigrahi also observed.
He acquitted Behera of the charge under sections 20(b)(ii)(C) of the NDPS Act.
Notice on bail plea of rape accused
In another development, the High Court has asked its Registrar (Judiciary) to issue a ‘practice direction or notification’ to all subordinate courts asking them to ensure presence of informant/victim/complainant during hearing of bail petitions of persons accused in cases of rape and gang-rape of girls less than 12 years of age and gang-rape of woman less than 16 years of age.
Justice SK Panigrahi said presence of the informant/victim/complainant is obligatory and it is a fundamental requirement of law that cannot be bypassed, ignored or neglected in view of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 which had come into effect from April 21, 2020, made it mandatory under Section 439 of the Cr PC for the informant or any other person authorised by the informant in cases of rape or gang-rape of minor to be present at the time of hearing on bail application of the accused, he said.
The direction was issued on July 15 while hearing bail petition of an accused in a case involving rape of a minor under Kashinagar police limits in Gajapati district in 2019.The case was pending before the Court of Additional Sessions Judge cum-Special Judge, Parlakhemundi. The subordinate court had rejected bail plea of the accused.
Taking note of it, Justice Panigrahi issued notice to the complainant informant/victim or any person authorised by the informant to be present at the time of hearing of the bail petition and directed for listing of the matter after two weeks.