Special NDPS (Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) court of Manipur on Monday sentenced a couple convicted in a drug smuggling case to 12 years of imprisonment. The couple are Sougaijam Robindro Singh of Kakching Wairi currently residing at Moreh Super Market and his wife Lhalhochami.
They were convicted in a drug seizure case registered with the NAB police station of Manipur police in 2018 related to seizure of 5,200 pieces of WY tablets and 100 gm of Heroin powder.
A team of NAB division of state police arrested them along with the smuggled illegal drugs from their house in the border town Moreh on April 18, 2018.
Five more persons were also arrested during investigation into the case. However, the court released them for want of concrete evidence regarding their involvement in the drug case.
Regarding the couple, they were charged of being the owner of the illegal drugs in the charge-sheet submitted to the special NDPS court on November 15 last.
After hearing the case, the court, on November 27 last, convicted them and the sentence hearing was held in the same court on Monday.
The court sentenced them under section 21(B) and section 22(C) of NDPS Act. The court further imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh each to the couple which they have to deposit to the concerned authority within six months.
After the sentence hearing, public prosecutor advocate Koshia said that drug trafficking, trade and consumption are eating into the vitals of society and this needs to be dealt with heavy hands.
She said, “This is a crime not for an individual or a person. They are committing the crime which is affecting the whole society.”
NNN