Srinagar, Oct 20: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has granted bail to a man from north Kashmir’s Kupwara in a case involving over 60 kg of heroin, citing prolonged incarceration, delay in trial and the fact that the co-accused had already been granted bail.
A bench of Justice Muhammad Yousuf Wani, while allowing 60-year-old Peer Saif Din’s plea, observed that he had remained in custody for more than two years and the trial was still at the stage of recording prosecution evidence, with its conclusion likely to take considerable time.
The case pertains to the seizure of 22.145 kg of heroin from three persons at Pali Morh in Kathua on September 2, 2018. Subsequently, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) recovered another 38.070 kg of heroin from near the house of one of the accused in Lachipora village of Kupwara.
The prosecution case is based on the contention that the three accused arrested in connection with the initial seizure identified Peer Saif Din as the alleged main supplier of the contraband. The NCB also relied on statements recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act and call- detail records to establish his alleged links with the other accused.
Peer surrendered before the trial court on May 15, 2024, and was formally arrested on May 19, 2024. A supplementary complaint was subsequently filed against him, and charges under Sections 8/21, 28, 29 and 60 of the NDPS Act were framed on February 8, 2025.
On behalf of the petitioner, his counsel Ajaz Ahmad Bhat argued that his implication was primarily based on statements of co-accused and his own alleged confession, which were inadmissible under the law laid down by the Supreme Court.
The counsel also questioned the prosecution’s reliance on call detail records, arguing that mere communication could not establish his involvement in the alleged offence.
In its counter argument, the NCB maintained that the case involved a commercial quantity of heroin and that the petitioner had remained absconding for nearly five years after the incident. The stringent conditions under Section 37 of the NDPS Act barred his release on bail and expressed apprehension that he could abscond or tamper with prosecution evidence, it said.
The Court acknowledged the statutory restrictions governing bail in commercial-quantity NDPS cases, but underscored that the question of reasonable grounds had to be assessed judicially in light of the facts and circumstances of each case.
While relying on a Supreme Court decision, the court noted that “the prolonged incarceration, generally militates against the most precious fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution and in such a situation, the conditional liberty must override the statutory embargo created under Section 37(1)(b)(ii) of the NDPS Act.
Without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, the court granted bail to the petitioner and directed him to furnish personal and surety bonds of Rs 1 lakh each, subject to the prescribed conditions
