- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 17TH DAY OF JUNE, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 4991 OF 2025 BETWEEN: MAHAMMED ALI P, S/O MAHAMMED SHAREEF, AGED ABOUT 47 YEARS, 1-109, GOLIKATTE HOUSE, GOLIKATTE, ARYAPU, ARYAPU(RURAL), DHAKSHINA KANNADA, PUTTUR, KARNATAKA - 574 210. (PETITIONER IS IN JC) …PETITIONER (BY SRI. AKASH RAJU.,ADVOCATE) AND: UNION OF INDIA, BY NARCOTICS CONTROL BUREAU, BZU, REPRESENTED BY THE SPECIAL PUBLIC PROSECUTOR FOR NCB, BANGALORE. …RESPONDENT (BY SRI. SHRIDEVI BHOSALE MARUTI., ADVOCATE) THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S 439 CR.PC (FILED U/S 483 BNSS) PRAYING TO THE XXXIII ACC AND SJ AND SPL. JUDGE (NDPS) BENGALURU HAS REJECTED THE BAIL PETITION ON 26.03.2025 IN CRL.MISC.NO.1637/2025. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: Digitally signed by KAVYA R Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY ORAL ORDER Accused No.1 in Spl.C.C.No.674/2025 pending before the Court of XXXIII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge and Special Judge for NDPS, Bengaluru, arising out of Crime No.48/1/09/2024/BZU, registered by Narcotics Control Bureau, Bangalore Zonal Unit, for offences punishable under Section 8(c) read with Sections 20(b)(ii)(A), 22(C), 23(c) and 28 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short 'NDPS Act') is before this Court under Section 483 of BNSS 2023 seeking regular bail. 2. Heard the learned counsel for the parties. 3. It is the case of the prosecution that on credible information received on 03.05.2024, the parcel that had arrived in the name of Girisha from Thailand was intercepted and from the said suspected parcel, 18 grams of contraband article allegedly ganja and 149 grams of - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 contraband article allegedly ganja gummies were recovered and subjected to panchanama. Subsequently, raid was conducted on 07.05.2024 in the house of Girish but nothing incriminating was recovered from his house. However, in his confession statement, he had stated that the parcel was sent at the instance of the petitioner herein by his son Rameez Ali from Thailand and he was informed that the parcel contained chocolates. Thereafter, on 07.09.2024 petitioner was arrested in his house at Puttur and remanded to judicial custody. Investigation of the case is completed and complaint is filed for the aforesaid offences against the petitioner and another. Bail application filed by the petitioner before the trial Court in Crl.Misc.No.1637/2025 was rejected on 26.03.2025. Therefore, petitioner is before this Court. 4. Learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that petitioner is a person having no criminal antecedents and he is in custody for the last nine months. Investigation of the case is already completed. The contraband article - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 seized in the present case is of intermediate quantity. Accordingly, he prays to allow this petition. 5. Per contra, learned Counsel for respondent who has filed her statement of objections, has opposed the petition. She refers to the chemical examination report of the contraband article seized and submits that Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabinol were detected in the contraband article allegedly ganja gummies which totally weighed 149 grams. She submits that since the aforesaid two susbtances were found in the contraband article, as per the relevant notification the contraband article seized is of commercial quantity. 6. FIR in the present case was registered based on the credible information received that the suspected parcel which was shipped from Bangkok in Thailand, contained contraband article. The suspected parcel was intercepted in the post office and after it was opened, it was found that it contained 18 grams of ganja and 149 grams of - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 ganja gummies. 18 grams of ganja is undisputedly of small quantity, as per the relevant notification issued under the provisions of NDPS Act. The contraband article allegedly ganja gummies totally weighed 149 grams and perusal of the chemical examination report of the said contraband article reflects that Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabinol were also detected in the said contraband article. 7. Learned counsel for the respondent has fairly submitted that though qualitative test of the contraband article allegedly ganja gummies has been done in the present case, quantitative test of the said contraband article has not been done till date. Unless the quantitative test of the contraband article is placed on record, it is not possible to arrive at a conclusion how much quantity of Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabinol was found in the contraband article allegedly ganja gummies and in the absence of the said report, it cannot be said that the contraband article allegedly ganja gummies is of - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 commercial quantity. Therefore, the contraband article allegedly ganja gummies has to be considered as of intermediate quantity. 8. Undisputedly, petitioner has no other criminal antecedents. He is in custody for the last above nine months. Investigation of the case is already completed. The trial in the case is yet to commence. Since the contraband article seized in the present case is of intermediate quantity, the rigor under Section 37(1)(b) of the NDPS Act cannot be made applicable as against the petitioner. Therefore, I am of the opinion that the prayer made by the petitioner for grant of regular bail needs to be answered affirmatively. Accordingly, the following:- ORDER The petition is allowed. The petitioner is directed to be enlarged on bail in Spl.C.C.No.674/2025 pending before the Court of XXXIII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge and Special Judge - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 for NDPS, Bengaluru, arising out of Crime No.48/1/09/2024/BZU, registered by Narcotics Control Bureau, Bangalore Zonal Unit, for offences punishable under Section 8(c) read with Sections 20(b)(ii)(A), 22(C), 23(c) and 28 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, subject to the following conditions: a) The petitioner shall execute personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh only) with two sureties for the likesum, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court; b) The petitioner shall appear regularly on all the dates of hearing before the Trial Court unless the Trial Court exempts his appearance for valid reasons; c) The petitioner shall not directly or indirectly threaten or tamper with the prosecution witnesses; d) The petitioner shall not involve in similar offences in future; - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:20827 CRL.P No. 4991 of 2025 e) The petitioner shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Trial Court without permission of the said Court until the case registered against him is disposed off. Sd/- (S VISHWAJITH SHETTY) JUDGE KVR List No.: 1 Sl No.: 12