NDPS Act | Kerala High Court Grants Bail To Tanzanian Nationals, Cites Lack Of Materials Connected To Offence Except Financial Transaction

The Kerala High Court recently granted bail to two Tanzania nationals, who are accused under the NDPS Act after noting that they have no criminal antecedents and that the only material produced by prosecution in the Final Report to connect them with the offence was financial transaction.Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas found that the rigour under Section 37 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act were diluted in the said circumstances. The grounds of arrest were not communicated to the accused, and that they have already undergone 270 days in custody were also factors considered by the Court.For context, as per Section 37, the twin conditions to be satisfied for granting bail are: (1) There are reasonable grounds to believe that the accused is not guilty of the offences alleged, and (2) He will not commit any offence while on bail.The petitioners before the Court were the accused Nos. 9 and 11 in a crime registered at Kunnamangalam Police Station, Kozhikode. They were students of a professional college in Punjab.They were accused of the offences under Sections 22(c) and 29 of the NDPS Act. The prosecution alleged that the 1st and 2nd accused were found with around 200 gm of MDMA in lodge room and that the petitioners had financed the procurement of the contraband. They were arrested on 13.03.2025 connection with the crime and produced before a Magistrate in Phagwara, Punjab. Thereafter, they were produced before the jurisdictional magistrate in Kozhikode following a transit remand order.The final report was filed on 13.08.2025 and the only material produced by the prosecution that connects the petitioners with the alleged offence was the financial transaction amounting to Rs. 42,500/- between one of the petitioners and the 2nd accused.The petitioners had earlier approached the Court for bail on 09.06.2025 but they were denied bail. The Court noted that there was no document to show that the grounds of arrest were communicated to the petitioners. It observed that details of the records produced by the investigating officer before the Magistrate at Phagwara do not show that the petitioners were communicated regarding the grounds of arrest at the time of arrest. Moreover, in the remand order of the jurisdictional magistrate, though there was reference to compliance of formalities, there was no specific reference whether grounds of arrest were communicated.The Court also opined that the rigour under Section 37 was diluted in the case:“Since, the prosecution has not been able to produce any material other than the financial transaction to indicate that the petitioners are involved in the crime, I am of the view that there are no reasonable grounds for believing that the petitioners are guilty of the offence alleged. Since, no criminal antecedents have been reported against the petitioners, I am also of the view that the rigour under Section 37 of the NDPS Act stands diluted.”Thus, the Court granted bail to the petitioners on conditions.Case No: Bail Appl. No. 12346 of 2025Case Title: Davi Ntemi Kilekamajenga and Anr. v. State of Kerala and Anr.Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Ker) 838Counsel for the applicants: Shaijan C. George, Arliss Trency Antony, Vinai John, Ajay RameshCounsel for the respondents: G. Sudheer – Public ProsecutorClick to Read/Download Order

NDPS Act | Kerala High Court Grants Bail To Tanzanian Nationals, Cites Lack Of Materials Connected To Offence Except Financial Transaction

K. Salma Jennath

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