THE revelation of the Home Minister, Mr Ravi Naik that seized narcotic substances have not been destroyed since the year 2000 has been quite shocking. This goes contrary to the spirit and content of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.
Articles 52A and 55 of the Act make it clear that the seizure should be brought to the notice of the magistrate and then after it should be disposed off. The Act also makes it mandatory to prepare an inventory of such narcotic drugs containing their description, quality, quantity, mode of packing, marks, even country of origin and other particulars and make an application, to any magistrate for the purpose of certifying the correctness of the inventory. This has been done in view of the vulnerability to theft, substitution and also constraints of proper storage space. What is most interesting is that this information has to be notified in the official gazette.
The observation of the Home Minister gives the impression that the Goa police have not been following the procedure laid down in this regard. Else, there is no reason that it should preserve the drugs and narcotics for over a period of ten years. Viewed in this background the allegations levelled on the floor of Assembly that "the police sometimes lift the drugs from the storing place" do not appear to be unfounded. Significantly, only a fortnight back the Goa police sacked one of its inspectors along with some policemen on the grounds of their involvement in a drug racket.
Usually, once the inventory of the seized drugs and narcotics are prepared and brought to the notice of the magistrate, the police dispose off the contraband goods. In most of the states and even abroad these are burnt using incinerators. It is beyond comprehension what made the Goa police to keep them. In fact the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has long back advised the country on internationally accepted destruction methods, which include testing the ashes to verify that the drugs have actually been burnt. In the United States, the Drug Enforcement Administration burns illicit drugs at contract facilities. Most incinerators have at least two chambers. The first chamber burns the drugs in a natural-gas fire, releasing gases that travel into a second chamber. The second chamber agitates the gases at a higher temperature and introduces more oxygen into the mix. Hazardous chemicals, like the ether and methanol used to make methamphetamine, are incinerated separately, according to Environmental Protection Agency regulations.
The Goa police may well argue that since the cases are pending before the courts it was preserving the drugs. But this would not be a tenable explanation. The reason is since they have already produced the drugs before a magistrate his certificate is enough to prove the police charge. Arguably, even if they are under compulsion to preserve it they should make it known whether they obtained a letter from the prosecution requesting that the substance be preserved for use in the trial. Since Goa has already emerged as a transit point for drug, and some cops have been found to be involved in the drug racket the government should order an in depth probe into it. The government should also ensure that it is completed within the shortest time frame and the guilty persons are punished. It should also ascertain what measures the police department has undertaken for speedy trial of such cases and also conviction of the culprits.
