Man jailed for 12 years for possessing ganja

A special court here has sentenced a 53-year-old man to 12 years of rigorous imprisonment for possessing 139 kg of ganja, saying a balance needs to be maintained between punishment and offence.
Special NDPS judge Shail Jain observed that the possession of 139 kg of ganja is seven times more than commercial quantity and sentenced Binod Kumar under relevant provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
"I am of the opinion that balance needs to be maintained between the punishment imposed on the convict for the offence committed and the family circumstances of convict, which are also necessaryfactors," he said while imposing a penalty of Rs 1 lakh on him along with the sentence.

According to prosecution, Kumar, resident of Azadpur here, was held from Red Fort area by police while he was trying to transport the ganja in five plastic bags.
The counsel for the accused had denied the charges arguing this was a case of mistaken identity and Kumar was held from his house, which amounts to a false case.
The court dismissed the defence's submissions saying the collective evidence of the prosecution witness proves the case beyond reasonable doubt.
The defence counsel prayed for leniency saying the convict was the sole bread winner of the family and has a wife, three daughters and two sons.

The court, after considering the gravity of the offence committed and the family circumstances of Kumar, sent him to jail.