Ahmedabad, March 15 – Police officers from Gujarat, including those in Ahmedabad and other units, attended a one-day workshop on Sunday, focusing on strengthening investigations under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Legal experts highlighted the importance of strict procedural compliance to ensure successful prosecution in drug-related cases.
The training programme was organized by the Ahmedabad Rural Police in collaboration with Sambhav Initiative.
The workshop aimed to enhance the investigative capabilities of police officers handling NDPS cases and to improve their understanding of how courts assess narcotics investigations.
Former Supreme Court Judge M. R. Shah and former Gujarat High Court Judge Ashokkumar Joshi, who is also the Chairman of the Gujarat Public Works Contract Disputes Arbitration Tribunal, conducted sessions on the judicial interpretation of the NDPS Act and the importance of following prescribed procedures during investigation.
Addressing the gathering, Shah said the seminar was organized to discuss technical issues that sometimes lead to acquittals in NDPS cases.
"Today, with the support of the Ahmedabad Rural Police and Sambhav Initiative, a one-day seminar on NDPS was held. Sometimes NDPS cases are acquitted on technical grounds, so we held this seminar to discuss and address these issues," he said.
The speakers noted that the NDPS Act is among the most stringent laws in the criminal justice system and emphasised the need for meticulous investigation, proper documentation, and adherence to safeguards such as searches, seizures, sampling, and the maintenance of the chain of custody to ensure that cases withstand judicial scrutiny and lead to convictions.
The workshop also featured addresses by Praveen Sinha, former Special Director of the CBI and former Deputy National Security Advisor; Sunil Joshi, DIG of the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS); and Sidhartha Korukonda, SP in the Anti-Terrorism Squad, who shared operational experiences and insights on combating narcotics trafficking and organised criminal networks.
Ahmedabad Additional Commissioner of Police Taun Duggal attended the workshop along with assistant commissioners of police, police inspectors, police sub-inspectors, and other personnel, including writers from the city police.
A team from the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism (ATS) squad also participated in the event.
Ahmedabad Rural SP Om Prakash Jat said the programme was organised through a joint collaboration to strengthen investigative practices in narcotics cases.
"Drug trafficking poses a serious threat to society and requires legally sustainable investigations to ensure effective prosecution," he said.
The workshop also had an interactive session during which police officers discussed practical challenges faced during NDPS investigations and shared suggestions to strengthen investigation and prosecution in narcotics cases.