Ratheesh vs State Of Kerala

Ziyad Rahman A.A., J

The petitioner, is the 2nd accused, in Crime No.47/2023 of Kottiyam Police Station, which was registered for the offences punishable under Section 20(b)(ii)(b) of the NDPS Act.

The prosecution case is that on 11.01.2023 at about 12.30 a.m, while the 2nd respondent along with his team were on patrolling duty, they found a car bearing Reg.No.KL-30D 4555 in suspicious circumstances and upon intercepting the said vehicle, they seized a big shopper bag under the driver seat of the vehicle. The persons who are travelling in the car ran away from the spot. Upon inspection it was found that the big shopper bag contained 1.952 kgm of Ganja. Later, as part of the investigation, the petitioner was arrested on 05.03.2023. Since then the petitioner has been under judicial detention. This application is submitted in such circumstances seeking regular bail.

Heard Sri.Pratheesh.P, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and Sri.M.P.Prasanth, learned Public Prosecutor for the State.

The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is innocent of all the allegations and according to him, there are no materials available on record indicating the complicity of the petitioner. It is pointed out that the petitioner is in custody for more than 40 days. He further points out that the petitioner is prepared to abide by any condition that may be imposed by this Court and shall co-operate with the investigation.

On the other hand, learned Public Prosecutor would oppose the aforesaid application. It is pointed out that there are specific allegations against the petitioner and the matter is under investigation. However, it is confirmed that the petitioner is not involved in any other cases.

I have gone through the records. It is true that there are certain allegations against the petitioner. However, the specific case of the petitioner is that, there is nothing to connect the petitioner with the commission of the offences. He was not arrested from the spot and there are no other materials showing his involvement in the matter. Any how, the fact remains that the petitioner is in custody since 05.03.2023 and there is substantial progress in the investigation. The quantity involved is not commercial quantity as well. In such circumstances, taking into account the alleged role of the petitioner and the period of detention he had already undergone, I deem it appropriate to allow this application. Accordingly, it is ordered that the petitioner shall be released on bail, subject to the following conditions:-

1) The petitioner shall be released on bail on executing a bond for Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh only) with two solvent sureties each for the like sum to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court.

2) The petitioner shall fully co-operate with the investigation.

3) The petitioner shall appear before the Investigating Officer between 10.00 a.m and 11.00 a.m on every Wednesday until the filing of final report.

4) The petitioner shall appear before the Investigating Officer as and when required.

5) The petitioner shall not commit any offence of similar nature while on bail.

6) The petitioner shall not make any attempt to contact any of the prosecution witnesses, directly or through any other person, or any other way try to tamper with the evidence or influence any witnesses or other persons related to the investigation.

7) The petitioner shall not leave the State of Kerala without the permission of the jurisdictional court.

8) The petitioner shall surrender his passport before the Jurisdictional court and, in case he does not have a passport, an affidavit to that effect shall be filed.

In case of violation of any of the above conditions, the jurisdictional Court shall be empowered to consider the application for cancellation of bail, if any, and pass appropriate orders in accordance with the law.