Patna High Court
Krishna Kumar ThakurversusThe State of Bihar
- Decided
- Disposal
- REJECTED
- Bench
- RAJESH KUMAR VERMA
Holding
Bail cannot be granted when a commercial quantity of narcotic has been seized and the court is not convinced the accused will not reoffend.
Summary
The petitioner, Krishna Kumar Thakur, was arrested on 11 July 2025 after police intercepted a vehicle in Majhaura village and recovered 44.6 kg of ganja, a commercial quantity, from four sacks. He applied for bail, claiming a clean antecedent and alleging procedural lapses under Section 50 of the NDPS Act and Section 103 of the BNSS, 2023. The prosecution opposed bail, emphasizing the large quantity seized and the fact that the petitioner was found in possession of the narcotics. The court examined the standards for bail in NDPS cases, particularly the requirement under Section 37 that the court be convinced the accused is not likely to commit the offence again. Citing Supreme Court precedents (State of Kerala v. Rajesh, NCB v. Mohit Aggarwal, Union of India v. Ajay Kumar Singh), the judge held that the recovery of a commercial quantity negated any presumption of innocence or lack of knowledge. Consequently, the court refused the bail petition, leaving the petitioner in custody pending trial.
Issues considered
- Whether bail can be granted to an accused when a commercial quantity of narcotic drug has been seized.
- Whether the procedural requirements of Section 50 of the NDPS Act and Section 103 of the BNSS, 2023 were complied with in the arrest.
- Whether the petitioner’s clean antecedent and alleged lack of knowledge are sufficient to satisfy the criteria of Section 37 of the NDPS Act for bail.
Legislation cited
- Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 — s. 20(b)(ii)(c), 22, 37, 50, 8
Subjects
- bail
- NDPS Act
- commercial quantity
- narcotic drugs
- Section 37
- Section 50
- Section 103
- high court
Judgment
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.6095 of 2026
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-101 Year-2025 Thana- LAUKAHA District- Madhubani
======================================================
Krishna Kumar Thakur Son of Sukhdev Thakur @ Sukhdev Hazam Resident
of village - Baniyadih, P.S.- Mufasil, District - Giridih (Jharkhand) but in
order Impugned wrongly Jhanjarpur has been mentioned
... ... Petitioner
Versus
The State of Bihar
... ... Opposite Party
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Ms. Kumari Pallavi
For the Opposite Party/s : Mr. Madan Kumar
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH KUMAR VERMA
ORAL ORDER
3 09-04-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned
Additional Public Prosecutor for the State.
2. Petitioner seeks bail who is in custody since
11.07.2025 in connection with Laukaha P.S. Case No. 101 of
2025 for the offences punishable under Sections 8,20(b)(ii)(c)
and 22 of NDPS Act.
3. The prosecution story, in brief, is that on 10.07.2025
at about 16:30 hours informant along with Police personnel
were proceeded for the evening patrolling duty. In the village
Majhaura on NH 227 when they were checking the vehicles at
around 18:30 hrs, a white colored four-wheeler bearing Reg No.
UP17AT5805 was intercepted and two persons were found
seating on the said vehicle. Thereafter, search was made and
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one sack was recovered from the dikki. On being asked both the
apprehended accused persons disclosed their name as Krishna
Kumar thakur(driver) and Ramnath Chaupal. On opening from
all four sacks, a substance like ganja was found. The packets
were weighed on an electronic weighing machine belonging to a
nearby shopkeeper Ramesh Kumar Sah and the total weight of
the recovered ganja was found to be 44.6 kgs. Accordingly,
seizure list has been prepared and provided to the accused.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
petitioner has clean antecedent and he has falsely been
implicated in the present case. It is next submitted that it appears
from the FIR and seizure list that recovery has been made from
the vehicle in question and petitioner was apprehended along
with co-accused persons and there is non-compliance of
mandatory provisions of Section 50 of NDPS Act and Section
103 of BNSS, 2023.
5. The learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the
State, on the other hand, has vehemently opposed the prayer for
bail of the petitioner and submits that from perusal of the FIR
and seizure list, altogether 44.6 kgs of contraband ganja was
recovered from vehicle and petitioner was apprehended along
with the co-accused persons from the vehicle in question and
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FSL report also confirmed the recovered contraband ganja and
recovered quantity is more than the commercial quantity.
6. The grant of bail in NDPS cases where the
recovery of commercial quantity of narcotic is alleged is
circumscribed under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substance Act, 1985, Section 37 which says that before grant of
bail, the Court must have reason to believe that petitioners have
not committed the offence and in the event of release he would
not commit similar offence.
7. The issue was considered by the Hon’ble Supreme
Court in the case of State of Kerala and Ors. Vs. Rajesh and
Ors. reported in (2020) 12 SCC, 122 as well as in the case of
Narcotic Control Bureau Vs. Mohit Aggarwal reported in
AIR 2022 SC 3444 and Union of India vs. Ajay Kumar Singh
@ Pappu reported in 2023 SCC OnLine SC 3456 dated
28.03.2023.
8. The recovery of huge quantity of contraband
recovered would not justify that the petitioner had no
knowledge of the narcotic nor there is any material to
substantiate that the petitioner would not commit such offence
in the event of release.
9. Hence, I am not inclined to enlarge the petitioner
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on bail in connection with Laukaha P.S. Case No. 101 of 2025
pending in the Court of learned District and Sessions Judge cum
Special Judge (NDPS Act), Madhubani.
10. Prayer is refused.
(Rajesh Kumar Verma, J)
Gaurav Sinha/-
U T
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