Orissa High Court
Krishna Kant Dwibedi vs State Of Odisha .... Opposite Party on 4 July, 2023
Author: S.K. Panigrahi
Bench: S.K. Panigrahi
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK
BLAPL No.11690 of 2023
Krishna Kant Dwibedi .... Petitioner
Sk. Zafarulla, Adv.
-versus-
State of Odisha .... Opposite Party
Mr.G.R.Mohapatra,ASC
CORAM:
DR.JUSTICE S.K. PANIGRAHI
Order ORDER
No. 04.07.2023
Dated Police Case No. Sections
F.I.R.
Stationand Courts'
No.
Name
222 15.07.2020 Koraput T.R.Case Section 20(b)(ii)(C) of the
Town No.41 of N.D.P.S. Act.
2020
pending in
the court of
learned
Additional
Sessions
Judge-cum-
Special
Judge,
Koraput
03. 1. This matter is taken up through hybrid arrangement.
2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the State.
Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 1 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03 // 2 //
3. The petitioner being in custody in connection with Koraput Town P.S. Case No.222 of 2020 corresponding to T.R. Case No.41 of 2020 pending in the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge-cum-Special Judge, Koraput registered for the alleged commission of offence under Section 20(b)(ii)(C) of the NDPS Act has filed this petition for his release on bail.
4. The prosecution allegation in brief is that on 14.07.2020 while the informant along with other police staffs were performing patrolling duty near Govt. College, Koraput, they found one Truck bearing Regd. No. OD-18TS-0188 being driven by the petitioner coming from Pattangi side. On suspicious they detained the said truck. On search they found contraband ganja weighing about 311 Kgs. 400 grams to have been kept in numbers of bags was recovered . Due to failure on production of authenticated documents with respect to such transportation, it was seized. Thereafter, the contraband article was seized. After observing all formalities, all the accused persons including the petitioner were arrested and forwarded them to the court.
5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is a driver of commercial vehicle by profession. As per instruction of his owner he was driving the truck. Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 2 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03 // 3 // Further, it is submitted that the petitioner had no knowledge regarding the contents of the goods. He was supposed to transport the loaded material in the vehicle as per the instruction of the owner of the vehicle. The petitioner has been languishing in custody since 15.07.2020 which is around three years. In the event of granting bail, there is no chance of absconding or tampering evidence.
6. Per contra, learned counsel for the State opposes the bail plea of the petitioner with the submission that the present petitioner being an outsider of the State, the likelihood of his abscondance cannot be ruled out. Hence, some stringent conditions may be imposed in the event of his release on bail.
7. Hon'ble Supreme Court have held that right to have speedy trial is a fundamental right of a citizen. Hence, keeping a person in custody for such a long time without any trial is not justified and violative of his fundamental right. The importance of speedy trial has been emphasized in the case of Hussainara Khatoon & Ors. vs Home Secretary, State of Bihar, wherein the Hon'ble Supreme Court has iterated that:
"Speedy trial is, as held by us in our earlier judgment dated 26th February, 1979, an essential ingredient of 'reasonable, fair and just" procedure guaranteed by Article 21 and it is the constitutional Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 3 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03 // 4 // obligation of the State to device such a procedure as would ensure speedy trial to the accused. The State cannot be permitted to deny the constitutional right of speedy trial to the accused on the ground that the State has no adequate financial resources to incur the necessary expenditure needed for improving the administrative and judicial apparatus with a view to ensuring speedy trial."
8. He further argues that the period of long incarceration suffered, which entitle the Petitioner for grant of bail. Right to Speedy trial is a fundamental right of an under trial prisoner and this observations have been resonated, time and again, in several judgments including that of Kadra Pahadiya & Ors. v. State of Bihar1 wherein it has been stated that the obligation of the State or the complainant, as the case may be, to proceed with the case with reasonable promptitude. Particularly, in a country like ours, where the large majority of the accused come from poorer and weaker sections of the society and are not versed with laws and after face the dearth of competent legal advice, the application of the said NDPS Rule is wholly inadvisable. Of course, in a given case, if an accused demands speedy trial and yet he is not given one, may be a relevant factor in his favour. But an accused cannot be disentitled from complaining of infringement of 1 1981)3 SCC 671 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 4 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03 // 5 // his right to speedy trial on the ground that he did not ask for or insist upon a speedy trial.
9. The Supreme Court has also held in Mohd. Muslim @ Hussain v. State (NCT of Delhi)2 that incarceration has further deleterious effects where the accused belongs to the weakest economic strata: immediate loss of livelihood, and in several cases, scattering of families as well as loss of family bonds and alienation from society. The courts therefore, have to be sensitive to these aspects (because in the event of an acquittal, the loss to the accused is irreparable), and ensure that trials - especially in cases, where special laws enact stringent provisions, are taken up and concluded speedily.
10. Without going into the merits of the matter at this stage and based on the facts and circumstances of the case as well as period of detention of the petitioner in custody without trial, it is directed that let the petitioner be released on bail in the aforesaid case by furnishing cash security/property security of Rs. 2,00,000/- (Rupees two lakhs) besides a bond of Rs.50,000/- with two local sureties each of the like amount to the satisfaction of the learned court in seisin over the matter with further conditions that 2 SLP (Crl.) No. 915 of 2023 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 5 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03 // 6 // i. he shall appear before the learned trial court on each date of posting of the case;
ii. the petitioner shall not indulge himself in any criminal activity in future;
iii. the petitioner shall not tamper the evidence of the prosecution witnesses in any manner;
Violation of any of the conditions shall entail cancellation of the bail.
11. Accordingly, the BLAPL stands allowed.
(Dr. S.K. Panigrahi) Judge LB Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed Page 6 of 6 Signed by: LINGARAJ BEHERA Designation: Sr. Stenographer Reason: Authentication Location: High Court of Orissa, Cuttack Date: 07-Jul-2023 12:15:03