Man held with drugs on NYE 2020 sentenced to 12 yrs in jail

The police claimed they asked him his name and sought his identification documents, and the man attempted to escape in his car. He was stopped and asked to step out. He had a shoulder bag and when confronted, the man told the police that it had cocaine. During the trial, the police claimed that independent witnesses were then called and a search was carried out as per procedure laid down under the NDPS Act.

The accused through his lawyers had claimed that the procedure was not followed. The court, however, said that it was relying on the chemical analyser’s report which showed that the drug seized from the accused was cocaine and the 202 grams of the drug found in his possession, fell in the category of a commercial quantity of drug, which has higher punishment.

During the probe, police also found that the accused’s valid visa had expired in 2018 and was living in the country illegally thereafter. He was also found guilty under the Foreigners Act and sentenced to three years in jail. While the accused had submitted that he can be exempted under provisions where members of Commonwealth countries are given certain exemptions, the court ruled that Ivory Coast is not a Commonwealth country.
Gwahi was sentenced to the punishment on September 23 and the detailed order was made available on Wednesday.

From the homepage

Bihar elections: BJP sees changes as counter to anti-incumbency, but has few easy choices

Wintrack, importer of personal massagers, quits India citing harassment and corruption at Chennai Customs; Finance Ministry orders inquiry

How will the US government shutdown impact immigrants and visa holders?