Sample Sent To FSL Different From One Which Was Recovered: Punjab & Haryana HC Acquits Man Convicted In NDPS Case After 20 Yrs

Overturning a 20-year-old order convicting a man under NDPS Act for illicit trading of poppy husk and sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment, the Punjab and Haryana High Court observed that the sample recovered was not the one which was sent to Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).The appellant was convicted under Section 15 of NDPS Act for possessing over 29 kgs and 750 grams of poppy husk. The court while overuling the trial court order observed that there was scope to infer that the case property was tampered with. A division bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Sudeepti Sharma in its order said, "In sequel, the production in Court of the sample parcels whereons an incriminatory opinion was recorded but were not the ones which became sent to the FSL concerned, nor therebys it can be concluded that the above produced sample parcels in Court, are the ones which are to be convincingly stated to comprise the link starting from the recovery of the seizure being made at the crime site, and, after affirmative examination(s) of the contents thereof, thus lasting upto production thereof in the Court, for its then being shown to the investigating officer concerned."The Court found that the accused was falsely implicated in the case by the investigating officer. It further observed that since the sample drawn was different than the sample sent for FSL, the report loses "its evidentiary vigour.""Further scope is also left, thus to infer that the case property, if any, became tampered with. Moreover, much scope is also left for the drawing of an inference, that the case property other than the one related to the charge drawn against the accused, thus became produced in Court", opined the division bench.The Court highlighted that in the present case, it is nowhere mentioned that the samples were homogeneously mixed, hence the charges drawn on the weight of the samples drawn canner be "cogently proved."In the light of above findings, the Court allowed the appeal and acquitted the convict.Ms. Vishali, Advocate for Mr. Hem Raj, Advocate for the appellant.Mr. Maninder Singh, Sr. DAG, Punjab.Title: Jaswant Singh alias Babla v. State of PunjabCitation: 2024 LiveLaw (PH) 409Click here to read/download the order

Sample Sent To FSL Different From One Which Was Recovered: Punjab & Haryana HC Acquits Man Convicted In NDPS Case After 20 Yrs

Aiman J. Chishti

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