Mr. Jaspreeet Singhrai, Mr. Rohit Nagpal Mr. Shwetabh Kumar, Advocates v. STATE NCT OF DELHI THROUGH SHO PS IGI AIRPORT

Through: Mr. Jaspreeet Singhrai, Mr. Rohit Nagpal & Mr. Shwetabh Kumar, Advocates Versus STATE NCT OF DELHI THROUGH SHO PS IGI AIRPORT .....Respondent Through: Mr. Yudhvir Singh Chauhan, Additional Public Prosecutor for Respondent-State with WSI Jyoti Singh CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE NEENA BANSAL KRISHNA J U D G M E N T (oral)

1. Petition has been filed under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (hereinafter referred to as “BNSS”) seeking quashing of FIR No.310/2025 dated 12.04.2025 under Section 25 Arms Act, 1959 Police Station I.G.I. Airport New Delhi. CRL.M.C. 3153/2025 Page 1 of 5 Signature Not Verified Signed By:VIKAS ARORA Signing Date:13.05.2025 16:20:31

2. Briefly stated, on 12.04.2025, the Petitioner/Sudipta Kumar Mandal was travelling from New Delhi to Dehradun, Flight Number AI-2907. While screening the Petitioner’s baggage at Level-2 of Inline Baggage Screening Location, I.G.I. Airport and subsequently, upon physical search two live cartridges were recovered in the check-in baggage and the same was reported by DIAL Baggage Security Unit. Accordingly, FIR No.310/2025 was registered under Section 25 of the Arms Act, 1959. 3. The Petitioner has sought quashing of the said FIR on the ground that he was not aware of the existence of two live cartridges. The alleged recovery was purely inadvertent and was an unintentional mistake. 4. The Petitioner explained that the two recovered live cartridges from his possession were military-issue Self-Loading Rifle (SLR) ammunition belonging to his late grandfather, Shri Sudhir Kumar Mandal, who served in the Border Security Force (BSF) for more than 30 years. These cartridges, now obsolete and no longer in active use, remained unknowingly inside an old service suitcase that the Petitioner had borrowed for personal use but had not checked it before using the Suitcase. 5. The Petitioner contends that this incident stems from an innocent mistake devoid of criminal intent. 6. Reliance has been placed on Gunwantlal vs. State of Madhya