Uttarakhand High Court
C528/2275/2025 on 6 April, 2026
2026:UHC:2414
Office Notes, reports,
orders or proceedings
SL.
No.
Date or directions and COURT'S OR JUDGE'S ORDERS
Registrar's order with
Signatures
C-528 No.2275 of 2025
Hon'ble Alok Mahra, J.
Mr. M.S. Bhandari and Mr. Girveer
Chand, learned counsel for the applicant.
2. Mr. Rakesh Joshi, learned Brief
Holder for the State.
3. Present C-528 application has been
filed seeking quashing of the impugned
judgment and order dated 02.12.2025
passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate,
Purola, District Uttarkashi in Criminal
Misc. Case No. 59 of 2025 and further
seeking a direction to the concerned Police
Station Mori, District Uttarkashi to release
the seized articles/medicinal herb alleged
to be “Saalam Mishri” in favour of the
applicant.
4. Learned counsel for the applicant
would submit that an F.I.R. was lodged by
the police personnel alleging therein that
while the police party was on patrolling
duty to maintain law and order, they
intercepted a vehicle carrying bags of forest
produce and upon inspection, the Forest
Officer allegedly identified the material as a
forest herb known as “Meda/Panja”,
whereupon the persons in the vehicle were
apprehended.
5. Learned counsel for the applicant
would further submit that the applicant is
a registered associate representative of the
Herbal Research and Development
Institute, Uttarakashi, and for the purpose
of transportation and sale of medicinal
herbs, a valid rawanna/transit pass had
been issued in favour of the applicant by
the Herbal Research and Development
Institute, Gopeshwar-Chamoli for
transportation and sale of the medicinal
herb known as “Saalam Mishri”.
6. It is contended that on 10.10.2025,
when the applicant was transporting the
said medicinal herb along with certain bags
2026:UHC:2414
of potatoes, the police authorities seized
the entire consignment along with the
vehicle under Sections 26, 41 and 42 of the
Indian Forest Act, 1927, on the allegation
that the applicant was in possession of
Meda/Panja herbs, for which no valid
transit pass had been issued in favour of
the applicant.
7. It is further submitted that the seized
articles are presently lying in the custody
of the concerned police station; that, the
applicant had moved an application before
the learned Judicial Magistrate, Purola,
District Uttarkashi seeking release of the
seized herbs, however, the said application
was rejected vide judgment and order dated
02.12.2025. Being aggrieved thereby, the
present application has been preferred
before this Court.
8. Learned counsel for the applicant
would argue that the seized herbs are
legally cultivated Saalam Mishri, which do
not constitute forest produce within the
meaning of the Indian Forest Act.
According to him, the police have wrongly
described the seized material as
Meda/Panja and thereby created a false
case against the applicant. It is further
submitted that the seized property is of
perishable nature, and if the same is not
released expeditiously, it will deteriorate
and lose its commercial value.
9. Per contra, learned State counsel
would submit that the claim of the
applicant that the seized herbs are legally
cultivated Saalam Mishri is disputed. It is
contended that the applicant failed to
produce valid documents at the time of
seizure to establish the legality of the
alleged Meda/Panja herbs. It is further
submitted that a sample of the seized
material has already been sent to the
Forensic Research Institute (FRI),
Dehradun for scientific examination and
the report is still awaited. In such
circumstances, the learned Magistrate
2026:UHC:2414
rightly rejected the application for release
of the seized property in view of the
pending examination report.
10. At this stage, this Court does not
deem it appropriate to record any
conclusive finding on the exact nature of
the seized herbs, as the scientific report
from the Forest Research Institute
(FRI), Dehradun is still awaited, which
shall have a direct bearing on the
determination of the said issue. However, it
is not disputed that the seized material
consists of herbal produce, which is
perishable in nature and susceptible to
deterioration if allowed to remain stored for
an indefinite period of time in the police
station.
11. The Hon’ble Supreme Court in
Sunderbhai Ambalal Desai v. State of
Gujarat AIR 2003 Supreme Court 638 has
emphasized that seized property should not
be allowed to lie in police custody for long
periods and that appropriate orders for its
interim release should ordinarily be passed
so as to prevent its decay, damage or loss
of value. The Court observed that valuable
articles and goods should be returned to
the rightful claimant on appropriate
conditions, subject to proper identification
and production as and when required
during trial.
12. In the present case, the seized herbs
are alleged to be medicinal produce having
commercial value and are also claimed to
be perishable. Keeping such articles in the
malkhana of the police station for an
indefinite period, particularly when the
scientific examination is still pending, may
result in deterioration and loss of value of
the goods. Therefore, the ends of justice
would be adequately served if appropriate
safeguards are imposed while directing the
release of the seized material.
13. Accordingly, the impugned judgment
and order dated 02.12.2025 passed by the
learned Judicial Magistrate, Purola,
2026:UHC:2414
District Uttarkashi in Criminal Misc. Case
No. 59 of 2025 cannot be sustained in its
present form and is liable to be set aside to
the extent it declines consideration of
release of the seized herbs on suitable
conditions.
14. Consequently, the application is
allowed. The learned Judicial Magistrate,
Purola, District Uttarkashi is directed to
release the seized herbal material in favour
of the applicant, subject to the following
conditions:
(i) The applicant shall furnish
adequate security/bond to the
satisfaction of the learned Magistrate
equivalent to the assessed value of
the seized goods;
(ii) Before release, the Investigating
Officer shall prepare a detailed
inventory of the seized herbs, take
photographs and draw representative
samples, if not already done, for the
purpose of evidence;
(iii) The applicant shall produce the
said material before the Court or the
Investigating Agency as and when
required during the course of
investigation or trial; and
(iv) The release of the seized property
shall be subject to the final outcome
of the proceedings and shall not be
construed as an expression of
opinion on the merits of the case.
15. It is clarified that the observations
made herein are only for the purpose of
deciding the present application and shall
not affect the merits of the case during
investigation or trial.
16. Accordingly, the C-528 application
stands disposed of.
17. Pending applications, if any, stand
disposed of accordingly.
MAM Digitally signed by MAMTA RANI
DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF
(Alok Mahra J.)
UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH COURT OF
TA
UTTARAKHAND,
2.5.4.20=6a812005bebfcf46f244f3e58
4af1449e430ef900bf09a6d67ebbd64
2671329b, postalCode=263001,
st=Uttarakhand,
serialNumber=5de1751a4f1d9cabfd5
06.04.2026
RANI
4852c9e68911ca8b66dd26690a19164
8ab5d8dd004ef0, cn=MAMTA RANI
Date: 2026.04.06 17:32:01 +05’30’
Mamta
2026:UHC:2414