Rhea Chakraborty arrested for drug abuse: What do India’s laws say about the use of ganja and charas?

Bollywood actor Rhea Chakraborty was arrested on September 8 for alleged drug abuse. She was being questioned by the Narcotics Control Bureau over her alleged involvement in suspected drug abuse in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.

Chakraborty was in a relationship with Rajput at the time of the latter’s death on June 14, which led people to suspect an abetment to suicide angle involving her. She was booked under the National Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act for alleged drug possession and consumption.

The actor had initially denied all allegations of procuring curated marijuana, but she has reportedly confessed to having occasionally smoked a joint at parties later.

While India’s drug use policy prohibits smoking marijuana for recreational purposes, it is common knowledge that ‘weed’ is rampantly smoked as a recreational drug across India. Cannabis has anyway been consumed in India for spiritual, medicinal, and recreational purposes for centuries.

What are the drug laws that regulate substance abuse in the country?

The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985 and the Prevention of Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1988 are the main laws governing substance abuse in India.

The NDPS Act prohibits the cultivation, production, possession, sale, purchase, trade, import, export, use and consumption of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances except for medical and scientific purposes, in accordance with the law.

Narcotic drugs include cannabis. Using its plant resin (charas) and its concentrated variant hashish or the dried flowering or fruiting tops, called ganja, or any mixture of ganja or charas, is prohibited in India.

The NDPS Act lays down the procedure for search, seizure, and arrest of persons in public and private places. The punishment can range from fines to imprisonment.

What is India’s policy with regard to drugs?

The NDPS Act bans the use of charas, which is the separated resin obtained from the cannabis plant or hemp, in any form — whether crude or purified. This also includes concentrated preparations and the resin known as hashish oil or liquid hash.

Consumption of ganja, the flowering or fruiting tops of the cannabis plant, is illegal in India.

The consumption of any mixture, with or without any neutral material, of any of the above forms of cannabis or any drink prepared therefrom, is also punishable by law in the country.

The Great Legalisation Movement Trust, a non-profit research organisation that has been fighting to legalise Cannabis in India, has challenged the ban arguing it cannot be grouped with other hard drugs.

Which cannabis products are allowed in India?

Though the NDPS prohibits the production and sale of cannabis resin and flowers, the use of cannabis leaves and seeds is allowed in some States.

Cannabis cultivation for industrial purposes, including production of hemp, or for horticultural use, is legal. Cannabis is also recognised as a source of biomass, fibre, and high-value oil.

The consumption of cannabis in the form of bhang (the seeds and leaves) is legal in most Indian States and is often an integral part of cultural and religious celebrations, especially during the festival of Holi.

How prevalent is Cannabis use in India?

Among the illegal psychoactive substances used in India, cannabis is the most popular. In a 2019 study, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) stated that 7.2 million Indians had consumed cannabis in some form during the previous year.

‘Magnitude of substance use in India’, a survey released by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in 2019, states that about 2.8 percent of Indians aged 10–75 years (3.1 crore people) were using cannabis in some form or other, with a “preponderance of men among users” of the drug.

What is the punishment for the possession of illegal drugs in India?

In 2008, it was ruled that the punishment under NDPS Act would depend on the quantity of the drug seized by the police. However, the Supreme Court reversed the judgment earlier in 2020. As per the SC, traces of an offending drug is sufficient to declare the entire quantity. The punishment is rigorous imprisonment for no less than 10 years while it can be extended to 20 years. The offender is also liable to fine of no less than Rs 1 lakh. This may be extended to Rs 2 lakh.