- The Narcotics Control Bureau arrested three persons in 2012 — Aisha, Stephen and Ude Stanely Chidi — in connection with recovery of heroin from Subhash Nagar and Uttam Nagar
Ten days after he was released from Tihar jail on completion of more than 10 years of sentence in a drugs case dating back to 2012, the Delhi High Court Monday acquitted a Nigerian national after ruling that the only evidence against him was his own statement.
“There being no other evidence against the appellant, Stephen, except his statement under section 67 of the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act, and there being no discovery of a fact pursuant thereto, Stephen is liable to be acquitted of the charges framed against him,” said Justice Mukta Gupta in the ruling.
The Narcotics Control Bureau arrested three persons in 2012 — Aisha, Stephen and Ude Stanely Chidi — in connection with recovery of heroin from Subhash Nagar and Uttam Nagar. They were convicted in November 2015, and sentenced to an imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of Rs 1 lakh. The appeals against conviction were filed before the HC in February and April 2016. The HC on August 13,2021, reserved its decision on appeals, and pronounced the order on Monday.
Justice Gupta, in the ruling, upheld the conviction and sentence awarded to Chidi and Aisha. It asked the Tihar jail superintendent to release Stephen if he was still in custody and not required in any other case. However, according to information sent by Tihar jail authorities to the HC on June 27, he was released on June 25 on completion of his sentence.
Stephen, represented by counsel provided by Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee, had argued that the sole basis for his conviction was his statement recorded under section 67 of NDPS Act. The court was told the Supreme Court in Tofan Singh vs State of Tamil Nadu has ruled that confessional statements recorded under the Act’s section 67 cannot be used as incriminating evidence to convict the accused.
First published in The India Express