NDPS search safeguards and recording of secret information must be strictly followed, or conviction may fail on reasonable doubt.

Non-compliance with the mandatory safeguards under the NDPS Act created reasonable doubt in the prosecution case. The search was treated as doubtful because the accused, foreign nationals, were not shown to have been properly informed of their right to be searched before a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate, and the police evidence was inconsistent on who recovered the contraband and whether the offer under Section 50 preceded the search. The Court also noted that the secret information was not separately reduced into writing under Section 42, and that mere reference in the FIR was insufficient. The prosecution therefore failed to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt, and the conviction and sentence were set aside.

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Issues: Whether the conviction under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 was sustainable in view of alleged non-compliance with the mandatory requirements governing personal search and recording of secret information.

Analysis: The search was found doubtful because the accused were foreign nationals who were not shown to have been properly informed of their legal right to be searched before a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate. The evidence of the police witnesses was inconsistent as to who actually recovered the contraband and whether the search preceded the offer under Section 50. The Court also found that the secret information was not separately reduced into writing as required under Section 42, and that mere mention of the information in the FIR did not amount to compliance. Non-examination of the independent witness was treated as not material, and the alleged absence of tampering or non-production of the sample by itself was not decisive. Cumulatively, these deficiencies created reasonable doubt in the prosecution case.

Conclusion: The prosecution failed to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt, and the conviction and sentence were set aside with acquittal of the appellant.

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