Confiscation scheme under the NDPS Act can override interim custody of a seized vehicle used to transport narcotics.

A conveyance seized for transporting narcotic drugs was held not fit for interim custody under the Code where the NDPS Act's confiscation scheme applied. The Court reasoned that the NDPS Act is a special enactment to curb drug trafficking, and its confiscation mechanism, including Section 63, would be undermined if general interim custody powers were used to return the vehicle. The owner's claim that the vehicle was used without her knowledge raised factual questions requiring inquiry and did not justify release at the interim stage. As the vehicle was already secured in a garage, apprehended deterioration did not support return.

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Issues: Whether a seized vehicle used for transporting narcotic drugs could be released on interim custody under Section 451 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 despite the confiscation scheme under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.

Analysis: The seized conveyance was alleged to have been used in carrying heroin, and the Act contains a specific confiscation framework for conveyances used in the commission of offences. The Court held that the NDPS Act is a special enactment meant to curb drug trafficking and that its confiscation provisions, particularly the mechanism under Section 63, indicate that interim custody cannot be granted in a manner that would defeat the object of the Act. It was further noted that the plea that the vehicle belonged to the petitioner and was used without her knowledge or connivance raised questions of fact for inquiry and did not justify return of the vehicle at the interim stage. Since the vehicle had been secured in a garage, the apprehension of deterioration did not assist the request for release.

Conclusion: The vehicle was not liable to be released on interim custody under Section 451 of the Code, and refusal of return by the Trial Court was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a conveyance is seized as having been used for transporting narcotic drugs and is liable to confiscation under the NDPS Act, the general power of interim custody under the Code cannot be exercised so as to frustrate the statutory confiscation scheme.

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