Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Apr 19: High Court today granted bail to a person involved in carrying poppy straw after remaining in jail for six months.
The accused Barkat Ahmad Mir has been granted bail by the Court of Justice MK Hanjura with the condition that he shall furnish personal and surety bond to the tune of Rs 50000.
Court also directed him to be present before the court, if and when he is asked to do so and he shall not leave the territorial limits of the jurisdiction of the trial court without seeking permission and not tamper or intimidate the prosecution witnesses.
Court said the deprivation of liberty is tantamount to punishment and the principal that punishment begins after conviction and that every man is deemed to be innocent unless duly tried and duly found guilty has its application to the facts of the instant case in all the fours.
The applicant, court said, has been languishing in the jail for the last more than six months by now and he has to prepare for his defence which is of an essence in a criminal trial.
Mir was apprehended by the police personnel along with other accused and during the search of the two nylon bags containing 13 kgs and 100 gms of poppy straw were recovered.
It came to the fore that both the accused had obtained the poppy straw through illegal means for sale on higher prices to the customers and, therefore offences under Section 15/18 NDPS Act, were found to have been made out against them. On this report an FIR No. 03/2018, for the commission of offence under Section 15/18 NDPS was registered and the investigation ensued.
Court after perusal of the bail application and in view of the law said, it requires to be recapitulated that the rigor of Section 37 of the NDPS Act does not apply to the instant case.
“It also needs to be said that the case of the petitioner does not fall within the parameters of the offences that are punishable with death or imprisonment of life. Therefore, there appears to be no reasonable ground for declining bail to the applicant. The maxim of the law of bails which has its application to the case on hand where the quantity of narcotics recovered from the applicant falls within the scales of an intermediately quantity”, court said.
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