Ludhiana: A special court has sentenced two men to 12 years of rigorous imprisonment each after they were found in possession of dozens of prohibited intoxicant injections.Judge Harvinder Singh, presiding over the special court, also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on each convict. The ruling emphasizes the judiciary’s firm stance on drug trafficking in Punjab, with the court dismissing defense claims of false implication due to a lack of independent witnesses at the time of the arrest.The 2019 ArrestThe case dates back to Feb 11, 2019, when a police patrol from Sadar Khanna intercepted the duo near a shrine in Libra village. The convicts, Jaswinder Singh (29) and Manoj Kumar (30), are both residents of the Kapurthala district. Police observed the men holding a single bag between them. Upon searching the bag, officers recovered 98 injections of Buprenorphine Hydrochloride and 98 injections of Avil. The prosecution noted that the men attempted to hide behind the shrine upon seeing the police, a move the court viewed as evidence of “conscious possession.“Court Rejects Defence PleaDuring the trial, the defense argued that the police had failed to include independent civilian witnesses during the search and seizure, suggesting the drugs were planted. However, the court ruled that the testimony of official police witnesses is valid if it passes careful scrutiny. “The evidence of official witnesses cannot be distrusted simply due to the non-examination of independent witnesses,” the court observed. The judge further noted that the accused failed to provide any evidence of “ill-will or enmity” from the police that would justify a false implication.The court highlighted that the accused made no effort to report their alleged “false implication” to higher authorities at the time of the arrest. The term is 12 years of rigorous imprisonment each, and the financial penalty Rs 1 lakh for each person. They will undergo an additional one year of rigorous imprisonment if the fine is not paid.Legal Note: Salt ContentWhile 196 injections were recovered in total, the court clarified that the 98 injections of Avil do not fall under the NDPS Act. The conviction was specifically based on the 98 injections containing the prohibited salt Buprenorphine Hydrochloride.
