Nilkamal Das v. State Of West Bengal

06-03-2025 CRM (NDPS) 222 of 2025 (ct. no.29) S. De In re: An application for bail under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure corresponding to Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.

- A n d - In the matter of : Nilkamal Das.

.... Petitioner.

Ms. Sabrina Parveen, ... For the Petitioner.

Mr. Saryati Datta, Ms. Rajnandini Das, ... For the State. Order dictated by Arijit Banerjee, J.

1. The petitioner renews his prayer for bail which was rejected earlier by a co-ordinate Bench by an order dated July 3, 2024, passed in CRM (NDPS) 1011 of 2024. While rejecting the prayer, the Bench had directed the trial Court to ensure that the issue of framing of charges was taken up on July 15, 2025, which was the date fixed, without granting any unnecessary adjournment to either of the parties and if charges were framed, to expedite the trial to the utmost and conclude the same within a year from the date of framing of charges.

2. The petitioner says that charge was framed on July 15, 2024. Since then there has been no progress. Not a single witness has been examined.

3. Learned State counsel tells us that the prosecution has examined its first witness in part. Next date fixed is March 20, 2025. There are 11 chargesheet named witnesses. The one year period that the co-ordinate Bench had granted for conclusion of the trial would end only on July 15, 2025. In the mean time, the trial will be concluded.

4. We, therefore, see that the time period granted for conclusion of the trial has not yet expired. The trial has begun. Keeping in mind the huge quantity of Ganja recovered from the petitioner and the restriction in Section 37 of the NDPS Act, we are not inclined to allow the petitioner's prayer for bail, at this stage.

5. CRM (NDPS) 222 of 2025 is dismissed.

(Prasenjit Biswas, J.) ( Arijit Banerjee, J. )