Dehradun. Hostile forces with the intent to harming the country have launched a drug war as part of their ultimate goal to balkanise Bharat, the Uttarakhand High Court recently said.
Single-judge Justice Vivek Bharti Sharma observed that cartel of drug traffickers have active international network and support of disruptive forces.
“It is trite that Bharat is facing one of its big challenges in the form of illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. The cartels of traffickers have active international network and involvement of disruptive forces with active support. It is a matter of common knowledge that the fissiparous forces inimical to the country have unleashed the war of drugs to achieve their ultimate unholy goal to balkanise Bharat,” the Court said.
The Court further noted that the Narcotics Control Bureau of India mentions on its website that drug traffickers are increasingly leveraging technological innovations to challenge drug law enforcement agencies worldwide and the same includes using the darknet to sell drugs and deploying drones to transport drugs across borders.
However, the Court opined that investigations into offences punishable under the NDPS Act are being conducted in an unprofessional and faulty manner.
“In majority of time such faulty and unprofessional investigations lead to the acquittal of accused persons in serious offences. This situation is not only unfortunate but dangerous also because acquittal from charge of such serious offences not only emboldens the acquitted persons but the deterrence element of punitive provisions also loses its force,” the Court observed.
To prevent such unfortunate situations, it is essential that personnel from the investigative wing of the police undergo refresher courses and training from experts and officers, the Court added.
The Court made these observations while hearing a bail plea by a man who had been convicted by the trial court for committing offence under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act) and sentenced to 5 years of rigorous imprisonment.
