A person (not named in the order) was discharged from the offence under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic substances Act 1985 by JMFC, Quepem, thanks to a serious error committed by the police.

According to the prosecution, the accused was arrested on 21 August, 2017 near Curchorem railway station after a search revealed that he was in possession of 8 gm of ganja.

However, when the matter came to court the lawyer of the accused argued that the charges should be dropped as the police did not comply with Section 50 of the Act.

Section 50 makes it mandatory for the accused to be searched in the presence of a gazetted officer or magistrate. This was further clarified and reinforced by the Supreme Court in the Arif Khan versus the State of Uttarakhand.

While Advocate S Gaonkar represented the accused, assistant public prosecutor A Chimulkar argued for the State. The judgement was passed on 11 April.