The Rajasthan High Court has clearly held that re-testing or re-sampling of drug samples under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act is not permitted as a routine practice. The court emphasized that such requests can only be allowed in rare and exceptional circumstances, and that too within 15 days of receiving the initial Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report.

Justice Farjand Ali made this observation while allowing a criminal miscellaneous petition filed under Section 482 CrPC (now Section 528 BNSS, 2023) in Sadaram & Ors. v. State of Rajasthan, involving an FIR registered under Sections 8/22 and 29 of the NDPS Act.

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Case Background

The petitioners were arrested after a raid at their residence in Village Liyadara, Jhab, District Sanchore. During the search, two of the accused allegedly tried to flee but were caught. Police claimed to recover 3.376 kg of Mephedrone (MD), an electronic weighing machine, a plastic sealing device, and ₹1,50,400 in cash suspected to be drug proceeds. The samples were sent to the FSL for examination.

However, the FSL report revealed that the samples did not contain any narcotic or psychotropic substance. In fact, the tested materials were neutral in nature.

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To eliminate any lingering doubts, the control samples (C1, C2, C3) that had been preserved during the initial investigation were also sent to the FSL. But even those samples tested negative for drugs like MDMA or opium alkaloids.

On this basis, the High Court held:

"Since the suspicion of possession of contraband was not confirmed by the FSL report, there remains no case against the accused-petitioners."

Accordingly, the FIR No. 56/2024 and all related proceedings were quashed. If the petitioners were in custody, the Court ordered their immediate release.

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Justice Farjand Ali cautioned against the trend of courts and investigating officers seeking re-testing or re-sampling without clear grounds. He reminded all stakeholders of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Thana Singh v. Central Bureau of Narcotics [(2013) 2 SCC 590], which had observed:

"The NDPS Act itself does not permit re-sampling or re-testing of samples. These may, however, be permitted in extremely exceptional circumstances for cogent reasons to be recorded by the Presiding Judge. Such applications must be made within 15 days of receiving the test report."

The Apex Court had emphasized that:

"Re-sampling and re-testing at every stage is rampant under the NDPS Act, contrary to other laws where strict timelines are defined. The legislature intentionally omitted any such provision from the NDPS Act."

The Rajasthan High Court clarified that retesting may only be allowed in rare situations such as:

• Sample being damaged
• Sample has deteriorated
• Sample was accidentally consumed or wasted

Even then, courts must record specific and cogent reasons for allowing re-sampling, and such decisions must not be made routinely or casually.

"Any agency cannot initiate re-testing or re-sampling beyond the scope of the NDPS Act and its rules. The Trial Court must justify its reasons with strong grounds."

To ensure consistency and legal compliance in future NDPS trials, the Court gave the following mandatory directions:

1. To the Director General of Police (DGP), Rajasthan:
   A written communication must be issued within 60 days so that all SHOs across the state are informed and comply with this ruling.
2. To the Registrar General of the Rajasthan High Court:
   A copy of this judgment must be circulated to all judicial officers handling NDPS trials, with directions for strict adherence to these principles.

"Retesting or re-sampling shall not be entertained as a matter of course under the NDPS Act. It may only be permitted, in extremely exceptional circumstances, for cogent reasons, and within 15 days of the test report."

Considering that no narcotic substance was found in the case, and that both original and control samples tested negative, the Court ruled:

"In view of the legal as well as factual position that no contraband is recovered in this case, the Miscellaneous Petition deserves to be allowed."

Thus, the FIR and all follow-up actions were quashed, and if the petitioners were in custody, they were to be released immediately.

Title: Sadaram & Ors. v State of Rajasthan & Anr.