FPJ Legal: Nigerian gets bail as police didn't inform superiors after searching 201 grams of cocaine

FPJ Legal: Nigerian gets bail as police didn't inform superiors after searching 201 grams of cocaine

A bench of Justice Virendrasingh Bisht was hearing a plea filed by one Sholadoye Samuel Joya Nigerian national, seeking bail.

Narsi BenwalUpdated: Thursday, January 20, 2022, 08:14 PM IST
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FPJ Legal: Nigerian gets bail as police didn't inform superiors after searching 201 grams of cocaine | Pixabay (Representational Image)

The Bombay High Court on Thursday granted bail to a Nigerian national, booked for possessing 201 grams of cocaine on the ground that he wasn't informed about his right that he could be searched only in front of a Magistrate or a Gazetted Officer.

A bench of Justice Virendrasingh Bisht was hearing a plea filed by one Sholadoye Samuel Joya Nigerian national, seeking bail.

Sholadoye was arrested by the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Pune Police in 2019 after he was found wandering in a suspicious manner. Upon searching his person, the officers found him in possession of 201 grams of cocaine.

Further, the officers went to his house and upon conducting a search, recovered over 500 grams of cocaine. He was accordingly arrested and was in jail since then.

Before Justice Bisht, Sholadoye contended that the Pune Police didn't adhere to the rules prescribed under the Narcotics Drugs and Pschyotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, especially section 50.

Section 50 mandates an officer to inform the accused that s/he could be searched only in presence of a Gazetted Officer or a Magistrate.

The public prosecutor appearing for the Pune Police submitted that the rules have been complied with in letter and spirit.

"In the case in hand, it would appear from the FIR that while the informant (police officer) and other staff members were patrolling, they seeing Sholadoye's movement become suspicious and accordingly afterinforming his right of being searched in presence of a Gazetted Officer, took search of sack bag. Thus, on the spotthey recovered cocaine allegedly from him sack bag," the judge noted.


"The prosecution is not able to show that even thereafter whether compliance of the provisions of the NDPS Act was done by the police officials," the judge said, adding, "There is nothing on record to show that the informant had immediately after the raid or within reasonable time had informed his superiors about the raid and seizure of cocaine fromhis possession."


"A simple reading of the FIR would show that Sholadoye was not apprised of his right under Section 50 of the NDPS Act to be searched only before a Gazetted Officer or a Magistrate," Justice Bisht held.


The bench accordingly held that Sholadoye has made out a case for bail and ordered his release on a surety of Rs 50,000. The court has also ordered him not to leave the country and to surrender his passport with the Pune Police.

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