NDPS bail restrictions for commercial quantity heroin applied because prima facie material linked the accused to the alleged offence.

Bail under the NDPS Act was refused because the alleged recovery involved commercial quantity heroin, triggering the statutory twin conditions for release. The court found prima facie material connecting the accused to the offence, including concealment of the parcel in shock absorbers, recovery of similar articles and tools from his premises, and call detail records showing contact with the co-accused. On that material, the court could not record reasonable grounds to believe he was not guilty or unlikely to reoffend, so bail remained barred.

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Issues: Whether bail could be granted in a case involving recovery of commercial quantity of heroin, having regard to the statutory restrictions under the NDPS Act and the material connecting the petitioner with the alleged offence.

Analysis: The recovery was of 575 grams of heroin, attracting the rigour of the bail restriction for commercial quantity offences. The statutory scheme requires the Court to be satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing that the accused is not guilty and is not likely to commit any offence while on bail. The record showed that the parcel was concealed in shock absorbers, similar articles and tools were recovered from the petitioner's premises, and call detail records indicated contact between the petitioner and the co-accused. On the material available at the bail stage, it could not be concluded that the petitioner was unconnected with the offence, and the possibility of repetition of the activity and absconding could not be ruled out.

Conclusion: Bail was rightly refused as the statutory conditions for release were not satisfied.

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