NDPS -- Taking of Cognizance-- Prior Hearing to Accused Mandatory Under First Proviso to Section 223(1) BNSS
Where a complaint under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 is filed after July 1, 2024, a Special Court is mandatorily required to hear the accused before taking cognizance, in terms of the first proviso to Section 223(1) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. Section 36A(1)(d) of the NDPS Act is pari materia with Section 44(1)(b) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and the mandate of prior hearing under BNSS applies equally to complaints under both statutes. Mere remand on the date of cognizance does not satisfy this statutory requirement.
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