1 2026:CGHC:21006 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRC No. 2854 of 2026 1 - Mithun Munda S/o Suna Munda, Aged About 23 Years R/o Mundru, Toli Chikor, P/s - Khunti, District- Khunti (Jharkhand) 2 - Raj Munda S/o Jagarnath Munda, Aged About 25 Years R/o Pattibera, P/s- Khunti, District- Khunti (Jharkhand) ... Applicant(s) versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through Station House OfÏcer, Police Station- Basantpur, District- Balrampur (Chhattisgarh) ... Non-applicant(s) For Applicants : Mr. Amitesh Kumar Pandey, Advocate. For Non-applicant/State : Ms. Smriti Shrivastava, Panel Lawyer. MCRC No. 3437 of 2026 Uttam Roy S/o Abhinandan Aged About 41 Years R/o Village Baluchar Uttarmalda, Police Station Englisbazar, District Malda (West Bengal) ---Applicant(s) Versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Station House OfÏcer, Police Station Basantpur, District- Balrampur- Ramanujganj (C.G.) … Non-applicant(s) For Applicants : Mr. Vikas Pandey, Advocate. For Non-applicant/State : Ms. Smriti Shrivastava, Panel Lawyer. KUNAL DEWANGAN Digitally signed by KUNAL DEWANGAN 2 Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice Order on Board 05.05.2026 1. Since the above bail applications are arising out of same crime numbers and same Police Station and same offences so they are being heard and decided by this common order 2. These are the first bail applications filed under Section 483 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for grant of regular bail to the applicants who have been arrested in connection with Crime No. 107/2025 registered at Police Station Basantpur District - Balrampur (C.G.) for the offence under Section 15(C), 25 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985. 3. As per the prosecution story, in brief, it is alleged that on June 8, 2025, Sub-Inspector Narendra Tiwari, posted at Basantpur Police Station, while on night patrol duty, received information that the driver of vehicle bearing registration No. RJ 19 GJ 7447 had parked the said vehicle near the RTO barrier and absconded and that the vehicle contained illegal narcotic substance (Doda). Acting upon the said information and after summoning witnesses but without obtaining a search warrant, he proceeded to the RTO barrier along with his staff. Upon inspection of the Tata Ultra truck bearing registration No. RJ 19 GJ 7447, which was found parked at the indicated place, a total of 14 quintals and 44 kilograms of Doda, packed in 90 sacks, was recovered from its trailer. During the course of investigation, a notice was issued to the registered owner of the vehicle, namely Raju Singh, a resident of Rajasthan, who 3 stated that on the date of the incident, the vehicle was being driven by one Deepa Ram. Thereafter, both accused persons were taken into custody and their memorandum statements were recorded, wherein they disclosed that they used to travel to Ranchi to procure Doda in connivance with Moti Chaudhary, Bunty Hudda, and Uttam Roy, and that they had transported Doda from Ranchi to Rajasthan on four prior occasions. It is further alleged that Deepa Ram fled from the spot, abandoning the vehicle, due to fear of apprehension during checking at the Dhanwar barrier. On the basis of the information provided by the accused persons, one Uttam Roy was apprehended on the basis of his Call Detail Records (CDR) and mobile location. Subsequently, Sahil Anil Sanga was arrested and interrogated, who, during interrogation, disclosed that he was involved in the purchase and sale of Doda with Raj Munda, Mithun Munda, and Kalyan Sanga, and that payments were made through both cheque and cash transactions. Based upon such, aforesaid offences were registered against the accused persons. 4. Learned counsel for the applicants submit that the applicants, namely Mithun Munda, Raj Munda, and Uttam Rai, are innocent persons and have been falsely implicated in the present case. It is contended that no contraband has been seized from the possession of the applicants and their implication rests solely on the memorandum statements of co-accused persons, which have no substantive evidentiary value in law. It is further submitted that the essential requirement of conscious possession under the NDPS Act is completely absent in the present case. They further submits that 4 the applicants are in judicial custody for a considerable period, i.e., since 29.07.2025 and 11.09.2025 respectively, and the trial is likely to take a long time for its conclusion, as not a single prosecution witness has been examined till date out of the total cited witnesses. It is also submitted that similarly placed co-accused, including the owner of the vehicle, has already been enlarged on bail by this Court in MCRC No. 2368/2026, vide order dated 19.03.2026 and therefore, the case of the present applicants stands on a better footing. It is further contended that the applicants are permanent residents, having fixed place of abode, and there is no likelihood of their absconding or tampering with the prosecution evidence. Hence, on these grounds, learned counsel prays that the applicants be enlarged on bail. 5. On the other hand, learned counsel appearing for the State/non- applicant opposes the bail application and submits that the charge- sheet has already been filed before the competent Court and there is sufÏcient material available on record to prima facie establish the involvement of the present applicants in the alleged offence. It is further submitted that although co-accused Raju Singh, the registered owner of the vehicle, has been granted bail by this Court, the same was on account of his serious medical condition, as he is suffering from kidney ailments, and therefore, the said order cannot be treated as a precedent for grant of bail to the present applicants. 6. Learned State counsel further submits that a huge quantity of contraband, i.e., 14 quintals and 44 kilograms (1444 kilograms) of Doda, which is much above the prescribed commercial quantity 5 under the NDPS Act, has been seized in the present case, thereby attracting the stringent provisions of Section 37 of the NDPS Act. It is contended that the present applicants are not innocent, rather they are part of an organized network engaged in illegal trafÏcking of narcotic substances, and their involvement has surfaced during investigation on the basis of memorandum statements, call detail records (CDR), and mobile location evidence, which clearly establish their nexus with co-accused persons involved in procurement, transportation and distribution of contraband from Ranchi to Rajasthan on multiple occasions. It is further submitted that the applicant Uttam Rai was apprehended on the basis of technical evidence, including CDR and location tracking, while applicants Mithun Munda and Raj Munda have been named by co- accused Sahil Anil Sanga as active participants in the purchase and sale of Doda, and the transactions were carried out through both cash and cheque payments, indicating their direct involvement in the illegal trade. Considering the gravity and seriousness of the offence, the huge commercial quantity involved and the material collected during investigation, she prays that the bail applications of the present applicants deserve to be rejected. 7. I have heard learned counsel appearing for the parties and perused the case diary. 8. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, nature and gravity of the offence alleged against the present applicants and the material available on record, this Court finds that a huge quantity of contraband, i.e., 14 quintals and 44 kilograms (1444 kilograms) of 6 Doda, which is much above the prescribed commercial quantity, has been seized in the present case, thereby attracting the stringent provisions of Section 37 of the NDPS Act. This Court further takes into consideration that the involvement of the applicants has surfaced during the course of investigation on the basis of memorandum statements of co-accused persons, as well as corroborative material such as call detail records (CDR) and mobile location data, which prima facie indicate their nexus with other co- accused persons engaged in illegal procurement, transportation, and distribution of narcotic substances. The contention of the applicants that no contraband has been seized from their possession and that they have been implicated only on the basis of memorandum statements cannot be accepted at this stage in view of the material collected during investigation. 9. This Court also finds that the quantity of contraband involved is much above the commercial quantity and there are no reasonable grounds at this stage to believe that the applicants are not involved in the alleged offence, nor can it be said that they are not likely to commit any offence while on bail, as required under Section 37 of the NDPS Act. Considering the seriousness of the offence, the manner in which the alleged offence has been committed and the overall facts of the case and it is an organized crime, this Court is not inclined to grant bail to the present applicants. 10. Accordingly, the present bail applications filed by the applicants namely- Mithun Munda, Raj Munda and Uttam Roy involved in Crime No. 107/2025 registered at Police Station Basantpur District 7 - Balrampur (C.G.) for the offence under Section 15(C), 25 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 stand rejected. 11. The Director General of Police, Chhattisgarh, is directed to ensure that all the prosecution witnesses are secured and made to appear before the trial Court, as it has been brought to the notice of this Court that the witnesses are not appearing, causing delay in the trial. 12. Learned State counsel is directed to send a copy of this order to the Director General of Police, Chhattisgarh for necessary information and compliance. 13. The Registrar (Judicial) is further directed to send a copy of this order to the concerned trial Court for necessary information and compliance. Sd/- (Ramesh Sinha) Chief Justice Kunal