Kerala High Court
Deoal K. Varghese vs Narcotic Control Bureau on 12 February, 2026
Author: Kauser Edappagath
Bench: Kauser Edappagath
2026:KER:12971
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE DR. JUSTICE KAUSER EDAPPAGATH
THURSDAY, THE 12TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 2026 / 23RD MAGHA, 1947
BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025
CRIME NO.3/2022 OF NARCOTICS CONTROL BUREAU, KOCHI,
ERNAKULAM
AGAINST THE ORDER DATED 01.09.2025 IN CRMC NO.2412 OF
2025 OF DISTRICT COURT & SESSIONS COURT, ERNAKULAM
PETITIONERS/ACCUSED NOS.1 & 2:
1 DEOAL K. VARGHESE,
AGED 36 YEARS
R/O SUNSET VALLEY RESORT, KALATHIL HOUSE,
AMALAGIRI -PALAKUZHY -THEKKEMALA ROAD,
PERUVANTHANAM MUNDAKKAYAM,
KERALA, PIN - 685532
2 ANJU DAVIS,
AGED 29 YEARS
W/O DEOAL K. VARGHESE,
R/O SUNSET VALLEY RESORT, KALATHIL HOUSE,
AMALAGIRI -PALAKUZHY -THEKKEMALA ROAD,
PERUVANTHANAM MUNDAKKAYAM,
KERALA., PIN - 685532
SRI.SHAIJAN C.GEORGE
SMT.ARLISS TRENCY ANTONY
SRI.VINAI JOHN
SRI.AJAY RAMESH
RESPONDENTS/COMPLAINANT:
1 NARCOTIC CONTROL BUREAU,
COCHIN ZONAL UNIT, REPRESENTED BY THE SPECIAL
PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA,
ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682017
2026:KER:12971
BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025
2
2 THE SUB INSPECTOR,
NARCOTIC CONTROL BUREAU, COCHIN ZONAL UNIT,
COCHIN, PIN - 682017
SRI.R.VINU RAJ, SPL.PP
SRI.K.K.SUBEESH
THIS BAIL APPLICATION HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON
12.02.2026, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE
FOLLOWING:
2026:KER:12971
BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025
3
ORDER
This application is filed under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short, BNSS), seeking regular bail.
2. The applicants are accused Nos.1 and 2 in O.R. No.3/2022 of Narcotics Control Bureau, Kochi, Ernakulam District. The offences alleged are punishable under Section 8(c) read with Sections 22(c), 23(c), 28 and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short 'the NDPS Act').
3. The prosecution case, in short, is that on 10.10.2022, on the basis of a reliable information, a DHL courier was intercepted at DHL Express, Ernakulam, and 620 grams of Ketamine was found concealed in the parcel and were seized. The substance was believed to be Amphetamine at the time of seizure and on chemical analysis it was found that the substance was Ketamine Hydrochloride. As per the documents that were seized along with the parcel and contraband, the parcel was booked using a copy of an Aadhaar Card in the name of Aparna.S. During the investigation, the person who runs the courier office stated that the courier was booked through him by a male and female at 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 4 his courier shop. A CCTV video recording was also provided by the courier office person, in which a male and female can be seen booking a parcel. On investigation, it is found that the Aadhaar card number was incorrect and the address mentioned in the Aadhaar for booking the courier was nonexistent. While so, on 28.06.2025, information was received from a reliable source that a person named Deoal (applicant No.1) and his wife, Anju Davis (applicant No.2) are Ketamine drug traffickers. They owned a resort named Sunset Valley Resort, Mundakkayam and they live on the premises of the property. On the basis of the aforesaid information, a search of the house inside the Sunset Valley Resort, in which Deoal and Anju Davis were living, was conducted on 29.06.2025, and substances believed to be Ketamine and Ganja were seized. During the search of the house, copies of the two Aadhaar cards were recovered in which photos of Deoal and Anju Davis were seen. Thereby, NCB Cochin registered a case, OR No.7/2025 and an occurrence report has been registered to JFMC-I, Peerumedu. Based on the information, photos of Deoal and Anju Davis in OR No.7/2025 were identified using case records from OR No.3/2022. The identification was further supported by CCTV footage and a fake Aadhaar copy, which suggested that Deoal and 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 5 Anju Davis are the same individuals who booked an Australia- bound parcel containing 620 grams of Ketamine. Thereby the applicants committed the aforementioned offences.
4. I have heard Sri.Shaijan C.George, the learned counsel for the applicants and Sri.R.Vinu Raj, the learned Special Public Prosecutor. Perused the case diary.
5. The learned counsel for the applicants submitted that the applicants have been in custody since 29.06.2025 and the grounds of arrest were not communicated in accordance with law at the time of their arrest. The learned Special Public Prosecutor on the other hand opposed the bail application and submitted that the grounds of arrest were duly communicated.
6. Though prima facie there are materials on record to connect the applicants with the crime, since the applicants have raised a question of absence of communication of the grounds of their arrest, let me consider the same.
7. It is now well settled that the requirement of informing a person of the grounds for arrest is a mandatory requirement of Art.22(1) of the Constitution and Section 47 of BNSS and absence of the same would render the arrest illegal (See. Pankaj Bansal v. Union of India and Others [(2024) 7 SCC 576], Prabir 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 6 Purkayastha v. State (NCT of Delhi) [(2024) 8 SCC 254], Vihaan Kumar v. State of Haryana and Others (2025 SCC OnLine SC 269] and Mihir Rajesh Shah v. State of Maharashtra and Another (2025 SCC OnLine SC 2356).
8. In the instant case, the perusal of the records show that the grounds of arrest have been communicated to the arrestees, but they were not communicated to the near relatives. The Supreme Court in Kasireddy Upender Reddy v. State of Andhra Pradesh (2025 SCC OnLine SC 1228) has held that the grounds of arrest should not only be provided to the arrestee but also to his family members and relatives so that necessary arrangements are made to secure the release of the person arrested at the earliest possible opportunity so as to make the mandate of Art.22(1) meaningful and effective, failing which, such arrest would be rendered illegal. A learned Single Judge of this Court in Alvin Riby v. State of Kerala (2025 KER 67079) following Kasireddy Upender Reddy (supra) held that failure to communicate the grounds of arrest to the near relatives renders the arrest illegal. Inasmuch as the grounds of arrest were not communicated to the relatives of the applicants, the arrest stands vitiated and they are entitled to be released on bail.
2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 7 In the result, the application is allowed on the following conditions: -
(i) The applicants shall be released on bail on executing a bond for Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One lakh only) each with two solvent sureties for the like sum each to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Magistrate/Court.
(ii) The applicants shall fully co-operate with the investigation.
(iii) The applicants shall appear before the investigating officer between 10.00 a.m and 11.00 a.m. every Saturday until further orders. They shall also appear before the investigating officer as and when required.
(iv) The applicants shall not commit any offence of a like nature while on bail.
(v) The applicants shall not attempt to contact any of the prosecution witnesses, directly or through any other person, or in any other way try to tamper with the evidence or influence any witnesses or other persons related to the investigation.
(vi) The applicants shall not leave the State of Kerala without the permission of the trial Court.
(vii) The application, if any, for deletion/modification of the 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 8 bail conditions or cancellation of bail on the grounds of violating the bail conditions shall be filed at the jurisdictional court.
Sd/-
DR. KAUSER EDAPPAGATH JUDGE NP 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 9 APPENDIX OF BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 PETITIONER ANNEXURES Annexure A1 A TRUE COPY OF THE MAHAZAR DATED 10.10.2022 Annexure A2 A TRUE COPY OF THE OCCURRENCE REPORT IN O.R. 3/2022 Annexure A3 TRUE COPY OF THE INDEX PREPARED BY JFCM COURT II, ERNAKULAM Annexure A4 A TRUE COPY OF THE INVENTORY IN ANNEXURE 1 Annexure A5 A TRUE COPY OF THE APPLICATION SUBMITTED BY THE JUNIOR INTELLIGENCE OFFICER DATED 12.10.2022 Annexure A6 THE ENDORSEMENT OF THE HON'BLE COURT OF SESSIONS ON ANNEXURE 1 AND 2 DATED 14.10.2022 Annexure A7 A TRUE COPY OF THE ARREST MEMO PERTAINING TO THE FIRST PETITIONER/FIRST ACCUSED DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A8 A TRUE COPY OF THE ARREST MEMO PERTAINING TO THE SECOND PETITIONER/SECOND ACCUSED DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A9 THE GROUNDS OF ARREST ISSUED TO THE 1ST PETITIONER DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A10 THE GROUNDS OF ARREST ISSUED TO THE 2ND PETITIONER DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A11 A TRUE COPY OF THE REMAND APPLICATION DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A12 TRUE COPY OF THE REMAND ORDER DATED 01.07.2025 Annexure A13 A TRUE COPY OF THE INFORMATION NOTE DATED 28.06.2025 AND THE PRINTOUT OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS ANNEXED TO IT Annexure A14 TRUE COPY OF THE SEARCH AND SEIZURE MAHAZAR IN O.R. NO. 7/2025 Annexure A15 TRUE COPY OF THE OCCURRENCE REPORT IN O.R. NO. 7/2025 OF NCB, COCHIN 2026:KER:12971 BAIL APPL. NO. 12396 OF 2025 10 Annexure A16 TRUE COPY OF THE ARREST MEMO PERTAINING TO THE 1ST PETITIONER IN O.R. 7/2025 Annexure A17 TRUE COPY OF THE GROUNDS OF ARREST PERTAINING TO THE 1ST PETITIONER O.R. 7/2025, Annexure A18 TRUE COPY OF THE ARREST MEMO PERTAINING TO THE 2ND PETITIONER O.R. 7/2025, Annexure A19 TRUE COPY OF THE GROUNDS OF ARREST OF THE 2ND PETITIONER O.R. 7/2025 Annexure A20 TRUE COPY OF THE AADHAAR OF THE 2ND PETITIONER Annexure A21 TRUE COPY OF THE APPLICATION IN CRL.
M.C. NO. 2412/2025 WITHOUT
EXHIBITS/ANNEXURES
Annexure A22 TRUE COPY OF THE REPORT/OBJECTION FILED
BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT IN CRL.M.C. NO.
2412/2025 DATED 24.08.2025
Annexure A23 TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY TO THE
REPORT/OBJECTION FILED BY THE
PETITIONERS IN CRL.M.C. 2412/2025
Annexure A24 THE CERTIFIED COPY OF THE ORDER IN CRL.
M.C. NO. 2412/2025 DATED 01.09.2025
RESPONDENT ANNEXURES
ANNEXURE R1(A) CHEMICAL AALYSIS REPORT DATED 17.01.2023