Kerala High Court Permits NDPS Accused To Go Abroad For Employment, Says Comparison With Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi 'Unwarranted'

The Kerala High Court recently stated that it was unjust to deny a 24-year-old man, who is the fourth accused in an NDPS case, permission to travel abroad for employment when conclusion of trial was not foreseeable in near future.In the facts of the case, ˇJustice VG Arun further observed that the Sessions Court citing examples of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi to deny permission to accused was 'unwarranted'.The crime was registered against the petitioner in 2018 alleging commission of offences under Sections 22(b) and 20(b)(ii) (B) of the NDPS Act, and the Sessions Case of 2019 is pending before Additional Sessions Court- III, Thrissur.The High Court made the above observation based on the report of the Additional Sessions Judge that atleast two years would be required for the disposal of the Petitioner's case. “this Court is of the opinion that, if two years are required to dispose the case, it will be unjust to deny the petitioner an opportunity to eke his living by working abroad. Citing the examples of individuals like Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi, in order to deny opportunity for the petitioner to go abroad for employment, was unwarranted.”The Petitioner submitted that he was granted bail in March 2019 and that he had approached the Sessions Court seeking permission to travel abroad for employment. It was stated that the Petitioner was only 18 years old during the commission of the alleged case in 2018. It was further submitted that the Sessions Court denying him permission to travel abroad for employment by using examples of individuals like Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi was unjust. The Court called a report from the Additional Sessions Judge regarding the present status of the case and the time required for its disposal. The Court noted that the Additional Sessions Judge submitted that charge has not been framed in Petitioner's case. It was also submitted that more than one thousand 5+ year old cases were pending and the total pendency of the court was more than 4000. It was also stated that pursuant to the direction of the High Court, priority is given for disposal of old cases. The Court stated that it would be unjust to deny permission to the Petitioner to go abroad for employment for another two years due to delay in disposal of the case. As such, the Court directed the Additional Sessions Judge to grant permission to the Petitioner to travel abroad for employment. Counsel for Petitioner: Advocates Manumon A., Rebin Vincent Gralan, Suresh C., Santhosh.T.P, Ria Varghese, Rosna M. Joy, Angel Mary K.P.Counsel for Respondents: Senior Public Prosecutor Pushpalatha M KCase Title: Sooryanarayanan v State of Kerala Case No: CRL.MC NO. 8982 OF 2024Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Ker) 79Click here to Read/Download Order

Kerala High Court Permits NDPS Accused To Go Abroad For Employment, Says Comparison With Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi 'Unwarranted'

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