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Najmunisha & Anr. vs. The State of Gujarat & Anr.

Not available · 2024 INSC 290Decided 9 Apr 2024
Not available
Justice Aniruddha Bose · Justice Augustine George Masih

Background

In 1999, based on a tip-off, narcotics officials intercepted an auto-rickshaw allegedly carrying one of the accused with narcotic substances in Gujarat; the vehicle sped away and was later found abandoned, with 1.45 kg of charas recovered from it. This led the raiding party to a house where a further 2.098 kg of charas was allegedly found, resulting in the arrest and conviction of the appellants (a mother and her associate) under the NDPS Act. Their statements recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act were treated by the trial court and the Gujarat High Court as admissible evidence pointing to their involvement in drug trafficking, and both were convicted with substantial sentences.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court relied on its own earlier three-judge bench ruling in Tofan Singh v. State of Tamil Nadu, which held that officers empowered under Section 53 of the NDPS Act are "police officers" for the purposes of the Evidence Act, meaning that any confessional statement made to them is barred and cannot be used to convict an accused, and further that a statement recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act cannot be treated as a confession at all. Applying this, the Court found that the statements which had formed the backbone of the prosecution's case against the appellants were inadmissible. With that evidence excluded, the remaining material was insufficient to sustain the convictions. The Court therefore set aside the judgments of the High Court and the trial court and acquitted the appellants, giving them the benefit of the doubt.

Lesson Learnt

A confession made to a narcotics or similar investigating officer cannot by itself be used to convict a person: such officers are treated as police officers in the eyes of the law, and confessions to police are simply not admissible evidence in an Indian criminal trial, no matter how serious the allegation.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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