PHAGWARA: A Special Court headed by Judge Aprajita Joshi in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar has convicted Manjit Singh, a resident of Village Punnu Mazara, under Section 22 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, for possession of commercial quantity of narcotics. The prosecution proved that on May 22, 2022, Singh was apprehended near the Langroya bypass with a kit bag containing 20 injections of Buprenorphine Hydrochloride (each 2 ml) and 20 injections of Avil.
The recovery, witnessed and sealed by competent officers including a DSP, was found genuine through consistent testimonies of police witnesses, forensic confirmation, and intact chain of custody. The Court rejected defence arguments alleging false implication, procedural lapses, and non-compliance with Section 50, holding that the contraband was recovered from a bag and not from Singh’s person. Noting the drug menace’s grave social impact, Judge Aprajita Joshi sentenced Singh to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹1, 00, 000, with one year’s additional imprisonment in default, granting set-off for time already spent in custody.