Mumbai, February 19 A special court for Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) in Mumbai has acquitted a 34-year-old South African woman in a case related to the seizure of 3 kg of heroin, and has recommended that action be taken against the investigating officials for their gross procedural lapses and "failure to perform their duties".
The special court, in a verdict delivered on February 9, said that the failure of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officers to follow procedure allowed the woman "to go free" in a serious case.
"When stringent punishment is imposed, strict compliance (with the Act) is expected," said Judge U C Deshmukh.
"The prosecution has presented the case that 2.9 kilograms of heroin were seized from the possession of the accused. The quantity and nature of the contraband itself speaks about the seriousness and gravity of the offense," he noted.
The investigating officer and other team members should have strictly followed the due procedure of law, the court said.
In a rare move, the court directed that the judgment copy be sent to the Director General of the NCB, New Delhi, "for necessary action regarding the dereliction of duties of errant officers in this case".
It also called for a "comprehensive training programme" to prevent such lapses in high-stakes narcotics investigations.
According to the prosecution, the NCB received a tip-off in February 2021 that a South African woman arriving at the Mumbai international airport by a Qatar Airways flight would be carrying narcotics.
Promise Khalishwayo, a hairdresser, was duly intercepted. While her personal search yielded nothing, officers claimed to have found 2.960 kg of heroin concealed within the lining of her trolley bag.
However, the court highlighted several critical lapses by the NCB team that marred the prosecution's case.
The personal search of the woman was conducted by a surveillance assistant, who was not authorized to do so under the NDPS Act.
The investigating officer failed to seek CCTV footage until a month later, by which time the data had been overwritten. Furthermore, the prosecution failed to produce independent "panch" (witnesses) during the trial, claiming that they could not be traced despite being airport security guards.
The team that intercepted the woman had no female officer, although the NCB had information about the accused 12-14 hours prior to her arrival, which further showed "recklessness, negligence and dereliction of duty," the court said.
"In conclusion, the prosecution has miserably failed to prove the charges against the accused beyond a reasonable doubt," the court held, while acquitting the South African national.