Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Pandoh in Kathua granted conditional bail to two men arrested over the recovery of charas.[1] Lakhanpur police arrested Sahil Verma and Mukesh Kumar at Basohli Morh on 17 June 2026.[1] The hearing took place on 6 November 2026 in the court of Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Pandoh.[1]
Police recovered a black bag from the suspects containing more than one kilogram of charas.[1] Police initially recorded the total weight of the seizure at 1.021 kilograms.[1] The court found that the total weight including the bag was one kilogram, and held that excluding the plastic sheet and packaging the actual charas weighed less than one kilogram.[1] Based on the weight, the court ruled that the recovery fell within the intermediate quantity category, meaning the stringent bail restrictions under Section 37 of the NDPS Act did not apply.[1]
The court granted bail to both accused on condition of furnishing a personal bond of 100,000 rupees each and two sureties of the same amount.[1] The judge ordered both men to attend every court hearing during the trial, refrain from committing any other offences, and not tamper with prosecution evidence or abscond.[1] The court specified that their release was conditional on not being wanted in any other case, and warned that bail could be cancelled if any condition was breached.[1]