Bombay High Court To Continue Hearing Aryan Khan's Bail Plea Tomorrow

The Bombay High Court will continue hearing the bail applications filed by Aryan Khan, Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha in the cruise ship drug case tomorrow at 2.30 PM. The three had moved the High Court following rejection of bail by the Special NDPS Court. They are booked under sections 8(c) read with 20b (purchase), 27 (consumption), 28 (attempt to commit offence), 29 (abetment/ conspiracy) and 35 (presumption of culpable mental state) of the NDPS Act. Justice NW Sambre today heard Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi for Aryan Khan and Senior Advocate Amit Desai for Arbaaz Merchant. ASG Anil Singh was also present in the Court for the Narcotics Control Bureau. Aryan Khan's case in brief Rohatgi argued that there was no occasion to arrest Khan as nothing was recovered from him and there is nothing on record to show that he had consumed anything either. No medical test was done, he pointed out. He also claimed that the purported voluntary statement given by Khan to NCB under Section 67 of the NDPS Act is inadmissible, in light of the Supreme Court's judgment in Tofan Singh case. Further, he has denied the veracity of WhatsApp chats where he is purportedly discussing about procurement and supply of drugs with the other co-accused in the case. Read further arguments here. Arbaaz Merchant's case Senior Advocate Amit Desai appearing for Arbaaz Merchant told the High Court that the NCB is roping in anybody and everybody using an "umbrella charge of conspiracy" to attract the rigours on grant of bail under Section 37 NDPS Act. "Before being charged with conspiracy there has to be evidence of an agreement," he said which is claimed to be missing in this case. He pointed out that at the time of arrest Aryan, Arbaaz and Munmun were not booked for conspiracy under Section 29. However, now, it has become the heart of NCB's case against them. Desai will continue his arguments tomorrow. The matter will be taken up at 2.30 pm.Live updates posted from the hearing may be read here. Case so far The Narcotics Control Bureau had arrested Khan, his friend Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha on October 3, following a raid at the international departure terminal of a Goa-bound cruise the previous day. They are booked under sections 8(c) read with 20b (purchase), 27 (consumption), 28 (attempt to commit offence), 29 (abetment/ conspiracy) and 35 (presumption of culpable mental state) of the NDPS Act, after six and five grams of charas was allegedly seized from his friend Merchant and model Dhamecha respectively. A special NDPS Court of Judge VV Patil had rejected their bail pleas, stating that a prima facie case of conspiracy and illicit drug trade is made out. The Special judge had observed that WhatsApp chats prima facie reveal that accused Aryan Khan is dealing in illicit drug activities for narcotic substances on regular basis. The court further observed that material placed on record reveals nexus of the accused no. 1 (Aryan Khan) with suppliers and peddlers. The bail pleas of Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha were also denied citing possession/ conscious possession of drugs and involvement in the alleged conspiracy. In his bail plea however, Khan has contended that the entire case of the Narcotics Control Bureau is based on "voluntary" statements given under Section 67 of the NDPS Act, which are inadmissible in evidence as per last year's Supreme Court judgment in the Tofan Singh case. It is further stated that the purported WhatsApp messages purportedly recovered from the mobile phone purportedly seized from the Applicant in flagrant violation of S. 100 Cr. P. C. and Section 50 NDPS Act and Art 20 of the Constitution of India. Furthermore, such WhatsApp messages have no evidentiary value and a person's liberty for an offence punishable with one year cannot be deprived on such basis. NCB has claimed in its reply to the bail plea that attempts are being made to tamper with and detail the on-going investigation. However, Khan's counsels have maintained that there was no such interference and there is no presumption in law that merely because a person is influential, he would tamper with the investigation. In a rather dramatic twist in the case, allegations of extortion by NCB officers to release Khan have also surfaced. The said allegations have been levelled by way of an affidavit filed by Prabhakar Sail, a witness in the case. The agency has claimed that the allegations are an attempt to derail the investigation and that is why the affidavit was not filed on court but clandestinely distributed in the media. NCB has also claimed that Shahrukh Khan's manager seems to have influenced Sail in doing so. Yesterday, the Special NDPS Court rejected NCB's application and observed that it cannot pass a blanket orders barring courts from taking cognizance of the said affidavit. Today, ...

Bombay High Court To Continue Hearing Aryan Khan's Bail Plea Tomorrow

Sharmeen Hakim

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