Ghaziabad: An Old Delhi resident was sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined Rs 1 lakh after being convicted in a 5-year-old drug dealing case. A police team from Loni arrested the accused with commercial quantities of contraband alprazolam powder in 2021. The drug is a fast-acting prescription benzodiazepine used to treat anxiety disorders, panic disorders and anxiety associated with depression. It is commonly known by brand names such as Xanax.Judge Dr Dinesh Chandra Shukla said that evidence and arguments presented during the trial made it clear that the accused, Sanjay, was guilty of drug trafficking under sections 8 and 21 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.“Currently, drug trafficking is on the rise among the younger generation, and the likelihood of falling prey to drug addiction remains high. Therefore, if the accused involved in drug trafficking is not punished, it will have an adverse impact on society as a whole. In the present case, the prosecution proved his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” the judge said, adding that the time already spent in custody shall be adjusted against the quantum of the sentence.On Jan 14, 2021, an FIR was registered in the case after sub-inspector Dinesh Kumar and his colleagues arrested Sanjay, a resident of the Old Delhi railway station area, near Akash Vihar Gate. The team was on duty at the DLF outpost around 9 am when they spotted the accused near Pushta Road during patrol. The accused attempted to flee when he spotted the officers and was quickly apprehended. During a subsequent search, 120 grams of alprazolam powder was seized from Sanjay’s possession.A chargesheet was filed on April 6, 2022, and the court framed charges under sections 8 and 21 of the NDPS Act. The accused denied the charges and sought a trial, during which five police officers, including the sub-inspector, testified in the case.The court noted that the accused did not present any evidence to suggest that the evidence of the police witness should be disbelieved. The judge further noted that the seized sample was sent for forensic testing and the Forensic Science Laboratory report states that the sample contained alprazolam powder, indicating that the narcotic powder recovered from the accused was alprazolam. The quantity recovered was 120 grams, which falls within the commercial category.The court said that the arrest and recovery of the contraband substance was proven by the prosecution beyond reasonable doubt and the accused deserved to be convicted.
