In Brief
The State of Gujarat challenged the acquittal of respondents charged under TADA and other statutes for illegal possession of foreign-made firearms and wireless devices. The Designated Court found that the prosecution lacked valid prior sanction under Section 20-A(2) of TADA. The Supreme Court held that the sanction orders were vitiated by non-application of mind because they merely granted permission to apply TADA sections without demonstrating the sanctioning authority's conscious evaluation of whether the recovered items and circumstances constituted specific TADA offences. Additionally, confessional statements recorded under TADA were inadmissible once valid sanction was lacking. The evidence regarding search and seizure was replete with fatal deficiencies. The Court dismissed the appeal, affirming the acquittal, as neither TADA nor other statutory charges could be sustained.
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