This order will dispose of two bail applications, bearing Nos. 62 and 63, both of 1982:
2. Muhammad Nadim Khan, petitioner, is a Director of Messrs Raziq International Limited, which is engaged in handling export business. He is incharge of the said business. His father, D. M. Khan, is the Managing Director of the Company. Mohammad Amjad, petitioner, is a transporter and has an exclusive contract with the said company to provide transport for goods.
2. On 12th August, 1982 Messrs Raziq International Limited obtained two non-duty paid containers from the Customs Department on behalf of another company known as Messrs Rahim Industries Limited for stung goods for four or five days and furnished a guarantee of Rs. 72,C00. On 13th August, 1982 the containers were taken to Garbi Shahu, Lahore, by the tractors supplied by 'Mohammad Amjad petitioner. At the godowns the containers were loaded with 66 bales and 292 cartons, while the loading was going on, the godowns were visited by both the petitioners as well as by two employees of Mesrss Raziq International Limited, namely; Sajjid and Akram Rana. On 15th August, 1982 the containers were taken to a place just outside the Dry Port at Lahore. On the same evening an information was received by the Deputy Superintendent of Customs that the containers contained certain contraband goods. A watch ,was kept on the containers but .Nobody came to claim the goods. On 17th August, 1982 at 10.00 a. m., the containers were taken to the Customs House they were opened by the Customs Officials and it was found that 21 bales contained 76 maunds of charas, the value of which in Pakistan was about Rs. 1,00,00,000.
3. During the course of investigation it was found that the company known as M/s. Rahim Industries Limited was really Rimmen International and that it was a fictitious firm. There was no trace of persons at whose instance M/s. Raziq International had claimed to have requisitioned the containers. The documents supplied to M/s. Raziq International for the purpose of exporting the goods found in the containers were all forged. The two petitioners were then arrested on the charge of smuggling charas out of Pakistan; an offence punishable under section .156 (1) (8) of the Customs Act, Their bail applications were rejected by the learned Special Judge (Customs), Lahore.
4. The Deputy Superintendent of Customs, Mr. Akram Anwar, who first received information with regard, to the nature of the goods in the containers is present in the Court today. He states that his informant was Mohammad Nadim Khan, petitioner.
5. In support of these bail applications it is stated at the bar that M/s. Raziq International Limited had obtained the containers from the. Customs Department on the basis of an order received on telephone. Later, a representative of M/s. Rimmen International visited its office and provided it with the necessary funds. In the regular course of business M/s. Raziq International Limited requisitioned the containers and after obtaining tractors from Amjad Khan petitioner placed them at the disposal of the representative of M/s. Rimmen International. There was no reason for the two petitioners to doubt that the goods sought to be exported out of Pakistan were contraband or the company for which they were acting was fictitious. Similarly, when they visited the godowns where the goods were being loaded there was hardly any basis for them to doubt that some of the bales contained charas. It was only when the export documents were handed over to Mohammad Nadim Khan by a representative of M/s. Rimmen International that his suspicion was aroused. He immediately made inquiries and found that the documents were forged. Upon this he immediately, got in touch in the Deputy Superintendent of Customs and informed him of what he bad discovered.
6. The Deputy Collector of Customs appeared before me. He stated that he had received information from a foreign source that the petitioners were equally involved in exporting charas out of Pakistan. He however, did not place before me any definite evidence in this regard. He also pointed out that the petitioners, particularly, Mohammad Nadim Khan, had not been able to give definite information with regard to the persons who had contacted him for requisitioning the containers.
7. Of course the question of guilt or otherwise of the petitioners can only be determined after the entire evidence has been considered in a regular trial. At this stage when I am considering only the bail applications of the petitioners I am impressed by the circumstance that it was Mohammad Nadim Khan, petitioner who had supplied the information about the nature of the goods loaded in the containers to the Deputy Collector Customs. He did so at a time when the goods had not yet been presented before the Customs Authorities for export and tile Customs Authorities had no idea that an attempt was being made to export narcotics out of Pakistan. I cannot therefore preclude the possibility at this stage that Mohammad Nadim Khan may have been the victim instead of being an accessory. As already pointed out the Deputy Collector did not place before me the evidence upon the basis of which the foreign source had informed him that the petitioners were actively involved in a drug smuggling (racket). The Position of Mohammad Amjad is even better, for he was merely a supplier of the tractors for the containers.
8. As regards the failure of the petitioners to trace the representative of M/s. Rimmen Industries I am not prepared to hold it against them unless it is shown that at the time-of their engagement there were circum--stances which should have put them on an inquiry with regard to the background of their client. The same is true with regard to the furnishing of guarantee. M/s. Raziq international had received the necessary funds and prima facie there was no reason why they should have suspected the bona fade of the exporter. No doubt the petitioners visited the godowns when the containers were being filled with goods, but then they were not present there all the time while the loading was going on. It is to be noticed that out of 292 cartons and 66 bales only 21 bales were found to be filled with charas.
9. The petitioners are at present in the judicial lock-up and they are no longer required for the purposes of investigation. Taking all these circumstances into consideration I direct that the petitioners are enlarged on bail on their executing bonds in the sum of Rs. 1,00,000 with two sureties each, in the like amount to the satisfaction of Special Judge (Customs), Lahore.