Jammu NDPS Court Discharges Two Accused, Holds NCB Supplementary Complaint Not Maintainable

||Black and White Digital News ||

||Parvinder Singh Aug 22, 2026||

JAMMU : The Court of Special Judge (NDPS Cases), Jammu, has discharged two accused in a narcotics case after holding that the supplementary complaint filed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) was not maintainable, as further investigation had been carried out without obtaining the express leave of the Court.

Special Judge (NDPS Cases) Parvaiz Iqbal held that the NCB had failed to obtain prior permission from the Court or the competent Magistrate before undertaking further investigation and subsequently filing the supplementary complaint. The Court observed that such permission is mandatory for conducting further investigation after submission of the final report/complaint.

The case originated from the seizure of 2.400 kilograms of charas from a public transport bus at Ban Toll Plaza in January 2022. In the original proceedings, accused Ghulam Mustafa Khan was convicted and sentenced to 12 years’ rigorous imprisonment, besides a fine of ₹1 lakh.

Subsequently, the NCB proceeded against Nazir Ahmad Khan and Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah, alleging that Nazir Ahmad Khan had supplied the contraband, while Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah was allegedly the source of the supply.

The prosecution relied upon statements recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act, besides call detail records (CDRs) purportedly showing contact between the accused persons. The defence, however, challenged the legality of the supplementary proceedings and argued that there was no recovery from either of the two accused and that the material relied upon by the prosecution was insufficient to establish their involvement.

Court: Further Investigation Required Prior Permission

After examining the record and relevant judicial precedents, the Court accepted the defence contention regarding the maintainability of the supplementary complaint.

The Court held that express leave of the Court is required before conducting further investigation, and that failure to obtain such permission renders the subsequent investigation and the proceedings based upon it legally unsustainable.

The Court also found that the supplementary investigation had not brought on record any genuinely fresh evidence. According to the order, the additional material primarily comprised three statements recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act and an old CDR, which had already been collected during the original investigation.

Section 67 Statements Cannot Sustain Prosecution

Referring to the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment in Tofan Singh v. State of Tamil Nadu, the Court observed that confessional statements recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act cannot be relied upon as admissible evidence for establishing guilt.

The Court further held that the old CDR, by itself, was insufficient to establish the alleged criminal conspiracy. In the absence of incriminating transcripts, voice recordings or other material demonstrating a meeting of minds between the accused, mere contact between the individuals could not establish the alleged offences.

No Recovery or Sufficient Link With Seized Contraband

The Court also noted that neither Nazir Ahmad Khan nor Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah was found in conscious possession of the seized charas.

The prosecution, according to the Court, had failed to place sufficient material on record establishing conspiracy, abetment or a credible link between the two accused and Ghulam Mustafa Khan, who had already been convicted in the original case.

The Court further observed that the supplementary complaint appeared to have been filed after the earlier judgment had criticised the investigation for not adequately pursuing the backward and forward linkages of the narcotics consignment.

Two Accused Discharged

Concluding that the supplementary complaint failed on both maintainability as well as evidentiary sufficiency, the Court discharged Nazir Ahmad Khan and Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah from the accusations under Sections 8, 20 and 29 of the NDPS Act.

The Court directed that both accused be released forthwith, if not required in connection with any other case.

The order was pronounced on August 21, 2026, by Special Judge (NDPS Cases), Jammu, Parvaiz Iqbal.