Drug seizure: Trial courts can rely on charge sheet in absence of chem reports
Times of India | 24 March 2025
123 Kolkata: To reduce delays in trials, the Calcutta High Court has stated that trial courts can accept a charge sheet even if chemical reports on the drugs seized are submitted late. The high court made this statement while refusing to grant bail to an accused in a drug case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The accused's lawyer argued before the division bench of Justice Arijit Banerjee and Justice Apurba Sinha Ray, stating that the trial court cannot take ‘cognizance' of a charge sheet filed without a chemical report, which makes it incomplete. Another point he argued was that the lab cannot send the report directly to the trial court.
The accused was arrested on an NH near Ankura Bridge on Nov 25, 2023, with 307 grams of heroin, along with another person. The charge sheet was submitted without a chemical report on May 15, 2024. The report was directly sent on July 9, 2024. A bail petition was filed and rejected on Nov 11, 2024, by the trial judge.
The division bench held that cognizance of offence is at nascent stage where the trial judge considers the allegation and whether further proceedings under the CrPC are necessary. "The stage of taking cognizance cannot be equated with the stage of framing of charge," Justice Sinha Ray stated.