Practice area
Appeals and revisions in NDPS cases
Appeals against conviction and sentence under the NDPS Act, and challenges to orders at the pre-trial stage.
Convictions under the NDPS Act carry long minimum sentences, and for commercial quantity, the minimum is a decade or more of rigorous imprisonment. An appeal to the High Court is the main remedy, and it needs careful preparation of the record.
What this work involves
- Appeals against conviction and sentence before the High Court of Karnataka
- Suspension of sentence and bail pending appeal
- Reappraisal of the prosecution evidence, the chain of custody, the independent witnesses and the forensic report
- Procedural non-compliance under Sections 42, 50 and 52A
- Reduction of sentence where the quantity or the provision applied was wrong
- Revision petitions against pre-trial orders, such as refusal to discharge or to frame the charge correctly
- State appeals against acquittal, and defending them
Frequently asked questions
Can I get bail after conviction?
An application for suspension of sentence and bail pending appeal can be made. Courts examine the strength of the appeal and the length of sentence already served.
Can an acquittal be appealed?
Yes. The State can appeal against acquittal, and the High Court considers the trial court's reasoning and the evidence.
Related reading
Section 37 of the NDPS Act: why bail is harder in commercial-quantity cases
How the twin conditions of Section 37 NDPS work, which cases they cover, and what that means for a bail application.
Search and seizureSection 50 of the NDPS Act: the right to be searched before a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate
What Section 50 of the NDPS Act requires before a personal search, and how courts have treated non-compliance.
Statements and noticesStatements under Section 67 of the NDPS Act: are they admissible?
What Section 67 of the NDPS Act allows, and what the Supreme Court held in Tofan Singh about statements recorded by NDPS officers.