Supreme Court lawyer files plea against vires of NDPS Act; asserts on reform for consumers

On 27 October, a plea was filed before the Supreme Court challenging the powers conferred as under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, 1985 (NDPS). The rationale behind the petition is that the course of action in legal proceedings should be segregated for drug traffickers, peddlers and consumers under the NDPS Act. An Apex Court lawyer Jai Krishna Singh has challenged sections 27A, 35, 37, and 54 amongst other vires of the Act. 

"The spirit behind the enactment of the NDPS Act was to secure the return of alleged drug users to society and cracking heavily on drug traffickers. But over the years, the spirit has been lost and alleged drug users including recreational users have become mostly the targets of the enforcement agencies overlooking the need to focus on alleged drug users' rehabilitation and keeping their identities covered," Singh's petition read. 

'NDPS Act terms any (drug) user as addict' even if it's 'recreational use'

In the petition before the Supreme Court, Singh has sought 'urgent' suitable amendments to aforesaid sections of the NDPS Act as it penalises consumption as well as possession by users 'besides distribution', manufacture and sale of any narcotic or psychotropic substance 'irrespective of its quantities'. Enumerating section 27 of the legislation, Singh, in his petition, clarified that it provides for the consumption of drugs while 27A provides for punishment for financing 'illicit trafficking' and harbouring offenders. 

"Also, despite NDPS Act being so diverse, it still terms any user as an addict including the recreational users, and punishes personal consumption spelling out life long consequences for such users causing stigmatization," Singh's petition before the SC read. 

'Drug consumers should be sent to rehabilitation centres'

Further, the petition stated that an illegal drug trafficker and peddler ought to be punished, however, the authorities should be sympathetic toward drug consumers and the same should be eliminated from the category of offence. Instead, the punishment should be scrapped down. As per the petition, drug consumers must be regarded as victims of drugs abuse and should be looked after. The petition implied that drug consumers and offenders should undergo reformative theories of punishment rather than deterrent ones; they should be sent to rehabilitation centres.

Plea challenges the spirit of NDPS Act

Furthermore, Singh's petition referred to recent arrests made by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in relation to more than one Bollywood drug cartel which has seen the arrest of Shah Rukh Khan's son, Aryan Khan, amongst others. 

"The way alleged drug users especially children from Bollywood were jailed on the charge of drug use and being part of a drug syndicate shows that the law was not implemented with the spirit which had motivated the enactment of the said NDPS Act," the petition read. 

Image: ANI/Representataive Image