Khushi Doshi
Published on: March 7, 2022 at 11:59 IST
The Supreme Court recently ruled that the Physical Nature of the Material is irrelevant in determining whether or not the ingredients of the specimen were Opium.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, Justices AS Bopanna, and Hima Kohli ruled that Physical Analysis is not required for testing Opium under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act).
“The Physical Nature of the Material is not Relevant for determining whether the Contents of the sample analysed were actually opium or not, and Physical Analysis is not prescribed under the provisions of the NDPS Act for testing the Opium,” the Bench said.
The Appellant, in this case, claimed that the required provisions of Section 50 of the NDPS Act (conditions under which searches of persons shall be conducted) were not followed and that he was neither searched nor informed of his right to be searched before the Gazetted Officer or the Magistrate.
The Chemical Examiner’s report also stated that the sample was some Powder Material/Chura.
According to the Appellant’s Counsel, “Opium is generally a Sticky Material.”
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, stating that the Physical Nature of the sample has no bearing on its content.
As a result, the Appellant’s Bail Bonds was revoked, and they were ordered to surrender to the Trial Court to serve the remainder of their sentence.
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