Lucknow: A fast track court in UP’s Barabanki has acquitted two men in a 13-year-old narcotics case after finding serious inconsistencies and procedural lapses in the police investigation. The court also raised doubt over the prosecution’s claim of recovering morphine from the accused.Fast track court judge Indrajeet Singh passed the order on June 18.The case dates back to July 15, 2013, when the then SHO of Subeha police station, Shekhar Singh, and his team arrested Ishaq and Shabbir, both residents of Barabanki, with 55 grams of morphine.The court observed that the seizure memorandum prepared by police did not even mention the date of recovery, raising serious questions about the authenticity of the alleged seizure. The court further noted that police were unable to explain when the raiding team left the police station to conduct the operation.The court found contradictions in the testimonies of the then SHO and other police witnesses on several crucial aspects of the case. These discrepancies weakened the prosecution’s claim and undermined the credibility of the investigation.In its observations, the court pointed out violations of mandatory provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. No gazetted officer was present during the search and seizure proceedings, and there was no record to show that the accused were informed of their legal rights under the NDPS Act before the alleged recovery was made.
