Purity Test of Narcotics
There were/are differences of opinion in Bangladesh as well as in India in respect of method for determining the weight of the offending narcotic drug. In 1996, our apex Court in Eliadah McCord (supra) declared the law that, "when it has been proved that the seized packets contained heroin then the whole of the contents must be treated as heroin for punishment. It is not necessary for the prosecution to prove 'the "actual and real heroin content" for the purpose of a conviction under 1(b) of the table". Under Article 111 of the Constitution, the law declared by the Appellate Division is binding on the High Court Division. Therefore, in the instant case, the 'whole substance' test would apply and accordingly, this Court holds that the petitioner was rightly convicted and sentenced under table 9 (kha) for possession of 411 pieces of yaba tablets weighing approximately 37.65 grams containing methyl amphetamine. [73 DLR 92]
