Criminal Petition No. 4990 of 2025 · The High Court
Case Details
- 1 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 22ND DAY OF APRIL, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 4990 OF 2025 BETWEEN: MR. JOHN NOROHNA S/O JOSEPH NOROHNA AGED ABOUT 30 YEARS R/AT. NOROHNA HOUSE BIJARKALA SHANKARPURA POST KURKAL VILLAGE, KAUP TALUK UDUPI DIST - 576 122. (BY SRI VISHWAS, ADV.) AND:
Legal Reasoning
Digitally signed by NANDINI MS Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA STATE OF KARNATAKA BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE KARKALA TOWN POLICE STATION REPRESENTED BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA, BANGALORE - 560 001.
Legal Reasoning
(BY SMT. N. ANITHA GIRISH, HCPG) …PETITIONER …RESPONDENT THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S 439 CR.PC (FILED U/S 483 BNSS) PRAYING TO RELEASE THE PETITIONER ON REGULAR BAIL IN CRIME NO. 146/2024 REGISTERED BY THE KARKALA TOWN POLICE STATION, ON THE FILE OF PRINCIPAL DISTRICT JUDGE, UDUPI FOR THE OFFENCES AND SESSIONS PUNISHABLE UNDER SECTIONS 8(c) AND 22(b) OF NDPS ACT AND SECTION 3(5) OF THE BHARATIYA NYAYA SANHITA (BNS), 2023. - 2 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY ORAL ORDER 1. Accused No.4 in Crime No.146/2024 registered by Karkala Town Police Station, Udupi, for the offences punishable under Sections 8(c) and 22(b) of the NDPS Act, 1985 and Section 3(5) of the BNS, 2023, is before this Court under Section 483 of BNSS, 2023. 2. Heard the learned counsel for the parties. 3. FIR in Crime No.146/2024 was registered by Karkala Town Police Station, Udupi District against Althaf and another for the aforesaid offences on the basis of first information dated 25.08.2024 received from Sri Manjappa D.R, Police officer, attached to Karkala Town Police Station. During the course of investigation of the case, the petitioner herein was arrested on 02.09.2024 and subsequently, remanded to judicial custody. His bail application filed before the jurisdictional Sessions Court in Crime No.146/2024 was rejected on 27.09.2024. Therefore, he is before this Court. - 3 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that undisputedly, there is no seizure of any contraband article in the present case. Petitioner is in custody for the last more than seven months in the present case. Accused Nos.1, 5 and 6 have been granted regular bail and accused Nos.8 and 9 have been granted anticipatory bail in the present case. Accordingly, he prays to allow the petition. 5. Per contra, learned HCGP, who has opposed the petition however does not dispute the submission made by learned counsel for the petitioner. She, however, brings to the notice of this Court that petitioner is a person with criminal antecedents and cases are registered against him for the offence punishable under Section 27(b) of the NDPS Act, 1985, earlier. 6. A perusal of the material on record would go to show that FIR was initially registered against accused Nos.1 and 2 after Investigation Officer had recovered contraband article allegedly MDMA totally weighing 3.26 grams from the car belonging to accused No.1. It appears that during the course of investigation, accused No.1 had revealed that he had purchased the contraband article from accused No.2, who along - 4 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 with accused No.5 had gone to Bengaluru and had purchased contraband article allegedly MDMA from a drug peddler in Bengaluru. It is further alleged that accused Nos.2 and 5 after returning from Bengaluru along with contraband articles had contacted the petitioner herein, who had introduced accused No.3 Giriraju to them and accused Nos.2 and 5 allegedly had sold the contraband article allegedly MDMA totally weighing 268 grams to accused No.3 and the said contraband article was subsequently, seized from the rented premises of accused No.3 at Tirupati, Andhrapradesh. Insofar as the petitioner is concerned, there is no seizure of any contraband article from his possession. The only allegation against him is that he had introduced accused No.3 to accused Nos.2 and 5 and in turn accused Nos.2 and 5 had sold the contraband article to accused No.3. Petitioner is in custody for the last more than seven months. Accused No.1 has been granted regular bail by this Court in Crl.P.No.2215/2025, accused Nos.5 and 6 have been granted regular bail by this Court in Crl.P.No.4131/2025 and accused Nos.8 and 9 have been granted anticipatory bail in Crl.P.No.13733/2024 and Crl.P.No.12957/2024 respectively. The earlier criminal cases registered against the petitioner was - 5 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 for the offence punishable under Section 27(b) of the NDPS Act, 1985 and undisputedly, no case was registered against him earlier for drug peddling. Under the circumstance, the rigour under Section 37(1)(b) of the NDPS Act, cannot be made very strictly applicable as against the petitioner. Considering the aforesaid aspects of the matter and also the stage of investigation of the case, I am of the opinion that the prayer made by the petitioner, who is in custody for the last more than seven months for grant of regular bail, needs to be answered affirmatively. Accordingly, the following order:- 7. The petition is allowed. The petitioner is directed to be enlarged on bail in Crime No.146/2024 registered by Karkala Town Police Station, Udupi, for the offences punishable under Sections 8(c) and 22(b) of the NDPS Act, 1985 and Section 3(5) of the BNS, 2023, subject to the following conditions: a) Petitioner shall execute a personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- with two sureties for the likesum, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court; b) The petitioner shall appear regularly on all the dates of hearing before the Trial Court unless the - 6 - NC: 2025:KHC:16621 CRL.P No. 4990 of 2025 Trial Court exempts his appearance for valid reasons; c) The petitioner shall not directly or indirectly threaten or tamper with the prosecution witnesses; d) The petitioner shall not involve in similar offences in future; e) The petitioner shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Trial Court without permission of the said Court until the case registered against him is
Decision
disposed off. Sd/- (S VISHWAJITH SHETTY) JUDGE DN