HC: Drugs found on separate accused held together must be treated as individual seizures

The Bombay High Court, in a significant ruling, has declared that drugs discovered on two individuals when they are apprehended together must be treated as distinct seizures. This decision was reached during a bail application by Sagar Borkar, who had been arrested for the possession of ganja (cannabis) the previous year. Borkar sought bail on the grounds that the police had purportedly seized only 10 kg of the contraband from him, which constituted an intermediate quantity.
The police, however, countered this claim by asserting that both Borkar and his co-accused had been found in possession of 22 kg of the contraband, which qualifies as a commercial quantity. Furthermore, they invoked a charge of conspiracy due to the fact that the duo was traveling together.
In an order issued on September 15, a single bench presided over by Justice S G Dige refused to accept the police’s argument. The bench took note of the fact that the police had confiscated 10.319 kg of ganja from Borkar and 11.24 kg from his co-accused.
“It is alleged that both the applicant and the co-accused were traveling together, and the contraband recovered from their possession was of a commercial quantity. In my view, though the applicant and co-accused were found together, they were carrying the contraband individually. The recovery of the contraband from the possession of the applicant (Borkar) and the co-accused should be considered separately,” the court ruled.
In this specific case, Borkar and another individual had been apprehended for the possession of ganja. While Borkar was found with approximately 10 kg of the substance, the police had seized 11 kg from the co-accused in the case. This ruling sets a noteworthy precedent for drug-related cases in the region.