Supreme Court: Liberal on Bail in Ganja Cases, Dismisses Pre-Arrest Plea

The Supreme Court on Wednesday orally remarked that it usually maintains a "very liberal" approach when it comes to granting bail in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act) cases involving Ganja (Marijuana) [Biswanath Mandal v. The State of West Bengal]. A Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale made the remark while hearing an anticipatory bail plea by a man accused in a case involving the alleged recovery of a "huge quantity" of Ganja.Dismissing the pre-arrest bail plea, the Bench suggested that the petitioner surrender and file for regular bail instead. It indicated that even if his regular bail is later rejected by the lower courts, the Supreme Court may take a liberal approach and grant him relief."Come for bail, we’ll give you. See, when it comes to Ganja, we are very liberal. Whenever it comes to us, we grant bail. Get a dismissal [of regular bail plea from the trial court] and come here; we will give you bail, no problem," the Bench remarked.Justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale of Supreme CourtSupreme CourtWhen it comes to Ganja, we are very liberal. Whenever it comes to us, we grant bail.The Court was hearing an appeal filed by one Biswanath Mandal, who had approached the top court challenging an order passed by the Calcutta High Court rejecting his anticipatory bail plea in an NDPS case. The High Court had noted that a "huge quantity" of contraband was recovered from Mandal’s wife at a house where she resided. Though Man