Delhi court grants bail to NDPS case accused, says 'shadow of doubt' over recovery

New Delhi, Oct 21 (PTI) A Delhi court has granted bail to a man accused under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, saying there was "a shadow of doubt" over the recovery proceedings.

Special Judge Atul Ahlawat was hearing the bail plea of Praveen Kumar, against whom the Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN) has registered an FIR.

In an order dated October 17, the court said, "The contraband which was allegedly recovered during the raid from the accused was in a red bag. However, the said bag was never seized by the investigating officer (IO)." It said the IO did not issue a notice to the independent witnesses and their statements were not recorded. "Although the secret information was received around 30-31 hours prior to the alleged apprehension, recovery and seizure, yet the said proceedings were neither photographed nor videographed," the court said.

It said there was a "shadow of doubt" over the proceedings.

The court granted bail to Kumar on furnishing a bail bond of Rs 50,000 and two sureties of the same amount.

Other conditions of bail included the accused not leaving the country, marking his attendance at a police station, not tampering with evidence and attending trial. PTI MNR SKM RC