Drug kingpin Edwin Nunes set to walk free

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Wednesday set aside the detention orders, albeit with riders, issued against Goa-based drug kingpin Edwin Nunes issued by the police commissioner under the PD Act on December 12, 2022.

The court, however, acknowledging that drug peddling disturbs public order, directed Nunes to deposit Rs 1 lakh to the police commissioner for a one-year period and file an affidavit, within two weeks, undertaking that he will not commit any crime in the future.

Nunes was charged with violations under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) four times by the Hyderabad Police, while his associate Priteesh Borkar — who was also detained under the PD Act — was charged twice.

While Nunes challenged the detention, the state government countered by vehemently arguing that the supply of drugs was a menace to society.

Pradyumna Kumar Reddy, senior counsel representing Nunes, contended that the Telangana Police did not seize any illicit substance from his possession, due to which he was entitled to be freed. Further, he said that conditional bails issued in three crimes by a special court were not violated.

Mujib Kumar Sadasivuni, a special government pleader for Telangana, submitted that the police seized drugs from Nunes’ customers in Hyderabad.

“Taking the criminal antecedents and criminal conduct of Edwin Nunes, the commissioner of police, Hyderabad, passed the detention order to prevent him from committing further crimes and disturbing public order,” he said.  

However, the High Court set aside the detention order on two grounds that the detenu did not violate any bail condition, after the special court’s order stated it was satisfied under 37(b) (ii) of the NDPS Act that the accused will not commit any crime.