Dulal Chowdhury And ANR. v. State Of West Bengal

22.06.2026

IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA

Item No.76 CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS JURISDICTION Ct.No.35 dc.

C.R.M. (NDPS) 896 of 2026 In Re : An Application for bail under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, filed in connection with Jiaganj Police Station Case No. 328 of 2025 dated 01.09.2025 under Sections 20(b)(ii)(c)/29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985. And In Re : Dulal Chowdhury and another ... Petitioners.

Mr. Arnab Chatterjee, Mr. Avik Ghosh, Ms. Ankusha Ghosh ... For the Petitioners.

Mr. Rajendra Banerjee, APP, Mr. Utsav Dutta ... For the State.

Learned advocate appearing for the petitioners submits that the petitioners are in custody for more than nine months and the alleged recovery in the present case is of 31.300 kgs. of Ganja. Charge-sheet has already been submitted and charges have been framed by the learned Trial Court, but till date witness action has not commenced. It has been submitted that there is no possibility of the trial concluding in near future. As such, petitioners may be released on bail.

Learned advocate appearing for the State, on the other hand, opposes the prayer for bail and submits that there has been recovery of commercial quantity of contraband. I have taken into account the period of detention of the present petitioners, the stage of the case and on an assessment of the overall circumstances of the case, I am of

the view that the learned Special Court would give priority to the examination of the seizure list witnesses preferably within a period of three months from the next date fixed. If the after evidence being recorded, learned Trial Court finds that there has been a dilution in respect of the evidence which has been deposed by the seizure list witnesses, learned Trial Court would not be reluctant to allow the petitioners' prayer for bail if the same is advanced immediately after the seizure list witnesses are examined. At this stage, the prayer for bail of the petitioners is rejected.

Mr. Rajendra Banerjee, learned APP along with Mr. Utsav Dutta, learned advocate is directed to appear for the State. Their appointment may be regularised by the concerned authorities.

The application for bail, being CRM (NDPS) 896 of 2026, is, thus, disposed of.

All concerned parties shall act on the server copy of this order duly downloaded from the official website of this Court.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties upon compliance with all requisite formalities.

(Tirthankar Ghosh, J.)