Bombay HC grants bail to NDPS accused; observes Arthur road jail overcrowded by 5-6 times its sanctioned capacity

A single-judge bench of Justice Milind N Jadhav on February 7 was hearing bail plea by one Sameer Latif Shaikh argued through advocate Nimesh Mehta. Shaikh was booked and arrested by Narcotics Control Bureau(NCB) in June, 2021 for possessing 52 grams of MD, which is 2 grams above commercial quantity under Narcotics Drug and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Mehta argued that Shaikh has been incarcerated for over three and half years, the probe is complete and a chargesheet has been filed in the case, therefore there was no purpose for keeping him behind the bars.

He also submitted that Shaikh had a strong case since there were discrepancies in seizure in the prosecution’s case and therefore the sessions court in Thane wrongly rejected his bail plea.

Justice Jadhav perused submissions and observed that “drug epidemic is a quasi pandemic of modern era, even developed societies have not been saved from the menace of drug traffickers.

The HC added, “The repercussions of drug usage are far reaching including but not limited to increasing crime rate, stunted economic growth, lowering health standards, the list could never be exhaustive. Like any other mischief that acts as a threat to the interest of society, drug trafficking also has specific penal laws aimed and enacted to curb the said mischief.

Justice Jadhav also said that the HC has been regularly dealing with bail applications of undertrials who have been in custody for long incarceration and is equally aware of conditions in prisons.

It referred to another case, in which Superintendent of Mumbai Central Prison through December, 2024 had stated that Arthur Road jail is “overcrowded beyond its sanctioned capacity by more than 5 – 6 times and every barrack sanctioned to house 50 inmates, as of date, it houses anywhere between 220 – 250 inmates.”

The judge added, “This situation is inhumane, but it also cannot be forgotten that addiction of drugs is also a serious issue for society at large.” The HC said that therefore it had to balance between these two priorities while deciding bail plea.

Justice Jadhav weighed in and granting bail to Shaikh observed “in view of the ambiguity and dichotomy in recording the correct weight of the contraband at the time of seizure which is seen and coupled with the facet of Right to Speedy trial flowing from Article 21 of the Constitution and keeping in mind that the applicant is a young man with a future full of opportunities, I am inclined to allow the bail application considering the totality of circumstances.”