The Bombay High Court has granted bail to a Kenyan woman arrested at the Mumbai airport in 2022 with 980 grams of cocaine, ruling that law enforcement failed to follow mandatory search protocols and pointing to her prolonged pre-trial detention.
Justice Shyam C. Chandak issued the release order on July 1, stating that both the non-compliance with statutory search regulations and the applicant’s lengthy imprisonment were valid grounds for granting bail.
The applicant, Mwanje Faridah, had been held in custody for nearly four years without a single trial witness being examined. Her attorney, Khushal Pawar, successfully argued that her physical search was conducted by a member of the Customs department’s Air Intelligence Unit raiding team, rather than an independent gazetted officer. The court upheld this objection, agreeing that the search bypassed the mandatory legal requirements outlined under Section 50 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Faridah’s arrest occurred on October 2, 2022, when she was intercepted at the Mumbai international airport on suspicion of smuggling contraband. Customs officials claimed that a search revealed plastic packets containing 980 grams of cocaine—which constitutes a commercial quantity under the NDPS Act—hidden inside her clothing. She was subsequently booked under several sections of the anti-drug legislation.
Strict Conditions For Release
While granting bail, the High Court imposed several terms to secure Faridah’s release. Under the order, she must furnish a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh, regularly attend all scheduled court proceedings, and surrender her passport to the Customs department.
