- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 31ST DAY OF OCTOBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MOHAMMAD NAWAZ CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 14323 OF 2024 BETWEEN: SMT KOLLA HEMA W/O SYEDA JAAN AHMED, AGED ABOUT 52 YEARS, R/A NO.1203, F BLOCK, BSR FORTUNE PRIME, MADAPUR, DURGAMMA CHARU LAKE, HYDERABAD, TELANGANA STATE - 500 081 …PETITIONER (BY SRI. MAHESH KIRAN SHETTY S., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE OF KARNATAKA REPRESENTED BY CITY CRIME BRANCH BANGALORE CITY AND HEBBAGODI POLICE STATION, ANEKAL TALUK, BANGALORE RURAL DISTRICT - 560 099 REPRESENTED BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT BUILDINGS, AMBEDKAR VEEDHI BENGALURU - 560 001 …RESPONDENT (BY SRI. RAHUL RAI K., HCGP FOR R1) Digitally signed by LAKSHMI T Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S 482 CR.P.C (U/S 528 BNSS) BY THE ADVOCATE FOR THE PETITIONER PRAYING THAT THIS HONOURABLE COURT MAY BE PLEASED TO QUASH THE ENTIRE PROCEEDINGS IN SPL.C.NO.741/2024 REGISTERED BY THE RESPONDENT POLICE, FOR THE OFFENCES P/U/S 27(b) OF THE NDPS ACT, 1985, PENDING ON THE FILE OF THE VIII ADDITIONAL DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE AND SPECIAL JUDGE FOR NDPS CASES, BANGALORE RURAL DISTRICT, BANGALORE. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ADMISSION, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MOHAMMAD NAWAZ ORAL ORDER The issue raised in this petition preferred by accused No.11 and accused / petitioners in W.P.No.31069/2024 are one and the same. 2. Petitioner / accused No.11 has sought to quash the entire proceedings pending against her in S.C.No.741/2024, on the file the Court of VIII Additional District and Sessions Judge and Special Judge for NDPS cases, Bengaluru Rural District, at Bengaluru. - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 3. Charge sheet is filed by Hebbagodi Police in their station Crime No.329/2024, against accused Nos.1 to 88 for the offence Punishable under Section 290 of IPC and Section 8(c), 21(b), 22(c), 22(b), 22(a) and 27(a & b) and 29 of the NDPS Act, 1985 and Section 14 of the foreigners Act, 1946. 4. As per charge sheet, the allegations against the petitioner / accused No.11 is that she attended a Rave party at one G.R. farm house on 19.05.2024 at 05:00 p.m. onwards, arragned by accused Nos.1 and 2, wherein, she consumed the drug (MDMA). 5. The prosecution has relied on the medical report of the accused obtained from a private hospital. The accused against whom similar allegations are made preferred the writ petition noted supra, before this Court. Even against the said accused, the allegations are that they have consumed the drug. - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 6. The Co-ordinate Bench of this Court after extensive examination of the material on record was pleased to allow the writ petition and quashed the proceedings insofar as the petitioners therein. It is relevant to refer to paragraph Nos.23 to 25 of the said judgment, which are extracted hereunder:- 23. The petitioners are alleged of consumption of drugs. If it were to be any other allegation of peddling or distribution for the purpose of sale, it would have been altogether a different circumstance. The petitioners are not alleged of that. They are alleged of consumption. The consumption of drugs has become a huge menace. While the distributors or the peddlers cannot be spared, so the consumers. The law itself recognizes lesser punishment upon the consumer. But, nonetheless, they are consumers of drugs. Therefore, it is necessary to test those persons who are alleged of consuming drugs, in a heist of this kind, so that the offence of consumption of drugs cannot be watered down by faulty tests. 24. It now becomes apposite to refer to the National Policy on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (‘Policy’ for short) as published by the Narcotic Control Bureau (‘NCB’ for short). One of the objectives of the - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 Policy is to re-assert India’s commitment to combat the drug menace in a holistic manner. The relevant portion of the Policy which deals with the establishment and working of Forensic Laboratories, for testing of NDPS substances reads as follows: “LABORATORIES 82. The NDPS Act, 1985 spreads the network of enforcement far and wide by enabling the Central Government and the State Governments to empower any of their officers to enforce it. Hence, we have a large number of agencies seizing drugs in the country. Although the total number of seizures in the country (about 20,000 per year) is not very large compared to the size and population of the country, these seizures are made by several agencies in several parts of the country. Several forensic labs in the country test these samples. These are the Central Revenue Chemical Laboratory (CRCL), the Central Forensic Science Laboratories (CFSL) and the State Forensic Laboratories (FSL) of each State. Successful prosecution of offenders hinges on the quality of test reports. Each of the seized samples has to be tested quickly, precisely and accurately as the test report forms the basis for trial of the accused. On the other hand, if the seized substance is not a drug, a quick and accurate report helps exonerate those who are arrested but against whom there is no evidence. 83. The Government of India shall continuously build the capacities of the personnel working in the forensic labs in the country and improve the quality of their equipment so as to get in the shortest possible time precise and accurate test reports which can withstand the legal scrutiny. - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 84. In order to achieve the above objective, one nodal national drug testing laboratory will be identified which shall, in addition to testing samples that it receives, be responsible for the following: a) Developing/ documenting/ prescribing standard testing protocols for each narcotic drug, psychotropic substance and precursor and any other related tests. b) Developing/ documenting/ prescribing standard methods for testing samples of blood, urine, etc. to confirm consumption of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances by any person. c) Developing advanced forensic testing methods such as impurity profiling. d) Developing standardized forms of reporting which can withstand legal scrutiny. e) Publishing and disseminating manuals on the above to all the forensic science labs in the country. f) Identifying the basic minimum equipment required to conduct tests to determine the nature and purity of any narcotic drug, psychotropic substance or precursor. g) Identify the gaps between the equipment that is required and that which is available in each of the labs. h) Make recommendations on the equipment required to strengthen each laboratory. i) Conduct training programmes for the personnel working in various forensic laboratories in the country.” - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 (Emphasis supplied) The Policy states that the Government of India shall continuously build the capacities of the personnel working in the forensic labs in the country and improve the quality of their equipment for the successful prosecution of offenders which hinges on the quality of the forensic test reports. Each of the seized samples has to be tested quickly, precisely and accurately, as the test report, forms the basis for trial of the accused. In order to achieve this objective, the Policy states that the Government of India shall identify one nodal national drug testing laboratory which shall serve several purposes including developing/ documenting/ prescribing standard methods for testing samples of blood, urine, etc. to confirm consumption of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances by any person; developing advanced forensic testing methods and standardized forms of reporting which can withstand legal scrutiny; publishing and disseminating manuals, to all the forensic science labs, in the Country and conducting training programmes, for the personnel working in various forensic laboratories in the Country. 25. However, no such nodal drug testing laboratory has been identified by the Government of India, nor any standard methods have been prescribed for blood or urine testing. It is therefore - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 necessary for the Central and State Governments to notify a nodal drug testing laboratory, in order to prescribe standard protocols and methods for testing samples of blood, urine, etc. and also perform other functions as afore-quoted in the Policy, failing which, the Courts would be constrained to accept the contentions of the accused and obliterate the crime, like in the case at hand." 7. This Court has allowed the writ petition and quashed the proceedings against the accused who are similarly placed as the petitioner. Petitioner who stands on the same footing as other accused whose petition has been allowed by this Court, is also entitled for the same relief. Hence, the following:- ORDER i) Petition is allowed. ii) The entire proceedings in Spl.C.No.741/2024 pending on the file of the Court of VIII Additional District and Sessions Judge, and Special Judge, for NDPS Cases, Bengaluru Rural - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:43872 CRL.P No. 14323 of 2024 District, Bengaluru stands quashed insofar as the petitioner / accused No.11. iii) The direction issued in W.P.No.31069/2024 holds good in the present petition as well. Sd/- (MOHAMMAD NAWAZ) JUDGE LDC CT-SG List No.: 1 Sl No.: 31