In Brief
The appellant was convicted and sentenced to fifteen years under Section 20(b)(ii)(c) of the NDPS Act for possessing 59 kilograms of ganja. The Additional Sessions Judge and High Court affirmed the conviction based on an FSL report. However, the Supreme Court set aside the conviction, holding that non-production of the seized narcotic material itself in court was fatal to the prosecution's case. Although the NDPS Act provides for reverse burden of proof on the accused, the prosecution must first establish a prima facie case. With panch witnesses turning hostile and only police testimony available, coupled with unexplained non-production of the seized substance, the Court found the conviction unsustainable and granted the appellant the benefit of doubt.
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