In Bollywood’s ongoing drug investigation that began with the unfortunate and inexplicable death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput earlier this year, several Hindi film industry bigwigs have been questioned by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), including actors like Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan. and Shraddha Kapoor with the latest addition of Arjun Rampal to the list.
In an NCB raid on Rampal’s residence last month, the drug agency had found clonazepam, which is listed as a psychotropic substance under the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) of 1985. This came after the NCB arrested Rampal’s girlfriend’s brother for allegedly being in contact with drug traffickers related to the Sushant Singh Rajput case.
During interrogation, Arjun Rampal had said that a doctor had prescribed the clonazepam found in his residence. He had also filed a prescription with the central agency that, according to the agency, was retroactive.
The NCB contacted Dr. Rohit Garg, a Delhi-based senior psychiatrist who had written the retroactive prescription for Rampal. The agency obtained Dr. Garg’s statement registered under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in which he confessed to having written the retroactive prescription. He said he wrote the recipe in good faith as Rampal had approached him through a family friend. He added that he was not aware of NCB’s investigation against the actor.
What is the NDPS Act?
The NDPS Act was passed in 1985 to consolidate and amend the law on narcotic drugs and implement the provisions of the international conventions on narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances to which India is a signatory. The NDPS Act is the country’s primary law to address drug use and trafficking in India. The law lists several psychotropic substances that are prohibited by it.
The central government is empowered to add or remove psychotropic substances to this list. For example, in 2015, the central government classified mephedrone (also known as methamphetamine or meow meow) as a psychotropic substance after it became very popular with young people and experts warned of the drug’s serious health effects. The law confers various powers to both the central and state governments to control and regulate the use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.
In accordance with section 8 (c) of the Act, the production, manufacture, possession, sale, purchase, transportation, storage, use, consumption, interstate import, interstate export, import to India, export from India or transshipment of Narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances by anyone are “prohibited operations”. In 1989, the central government amended the NDPS Act to provide for the establishment of specialized courts to deal with the crimes provided for in the law. The NCB investigates cases under the NDPS Act and brings them to court.
Punishment Arjun Rampal could face under the NDPS Act
The NDPS Law prescribes the punishment for crimes related to psychotropic substances based on the amount of the substance found. The punishment can be divided into three categories with respect to three categories of amounts provided by law. The three categories of amounts provided for in the Law and the corresponding sanction are:
- Small (rigorous imprisonment of up to 1 year or fine of up to Rs 10,000 or both)
- Less than commercial (rigorous imprisonment of up to 10 years and fine of up to 1 lakh)
- Commercial (rigorous imprisonment between 10-20 years and fine between Rs 1-2 lakh, the court may extend the fine beyond Rs 2 lakh after giving reasons at trial)
Thus, depending on the amount of psychotropic substance found, a person can be punished under article 22 of the Law if, in contravention of the provisions of the Law, he manufactures, owns, sells, buys, transports, imports between states, exports between states or uses any psychotropic substance.
In the case of Arjun Rampal, the OCN reportedly found him in possession of clonazepam, which is a psychotropic substance prohibited by law. If you are booked under the law and subsequently found to have committed any of the above-mentioned offenses under the law, you may face a severe prison sentence and / or a fine depending on the amount of substance found.
