Offences triable by Special Courts
Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 deals with offences triable by Special Courts. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), (a) all offences under this Act which are punishable with imprisonment for a term of more than three years shall be triable only by the Special Court constituted for the area in which the offence has been committ The Act came into force on 14 Nov 1985.
1[36A. Offences triable by Special Courts.-- (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974),
(a) all offences under this Act which are punishable with imprisonment for a term of more than three years shall be triable only by the Special Court constituted for the area in which the offence has been committed or where there are more Special Courts than one for such area, by such one of them as may be specified in this behalf by the Government;
(b) where a person accused of or suspected of the commission of an offence under this Act is forwarded to a Magistrate under sub-section (2) or sub-section (2A) of section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), such Magistrate may authorise the detention of such person in such custody as he thinks fit for a period not exceeding fifteen days in the whole where such Magistrate is a Judicial Magistrate and seven days in the whole where such Magistrate is an Executive Magistrate:
Provided that in cases which are triable by the Special Court where such Magistrate considers
(i) when such person is forwarded to him as aforesaid; or
(ii) upon or at any time before the expiry of the period of detention authorised by him,
that the detention of such person is unnecessary, he shall order such person to be forwarded to the Special Court having jurisdiction;
(c) the Special Court may exercise, in relation to the person forwarded to it under clause (b), the same power which a Magistrate having jurisdiction to try a case may exercise under section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), in relation to an accused person in such case who has been forwarded to him under that section;
(d) a Special Court may, upon perusal of police report of the facts constituting an offence under this Act or upon complaint made by an officer of the Central Government or a State Government authorised in his behalf, take cognizance of that offence without the accused being committed to it for trial.
(2) When trying an offence under this Act, a Special Court may also try an offence other than an offence under this Act with which the accused may, under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), be charged at the same trial.
(3) Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to affect the special powers of the High Court regarding bail under section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), and the High Court may exercise such powers including the power under cluase (b) of sub-section (1) of that section as if the reference to "Magistrate" in that section included also a reference to a Special Court constituted under section 36.
(4) In respect of persons accused of an offence punishable under section 19 or section 24 or section 27A or for offences involving commercial quantity the references in sub-section (2) of section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) thereof to "ninety days", where they occur, shall be construed as reference to "one hundred and eighty days":
Provided that, if it is not possible to complete the investigation within the said period of one hundred and eighty days, the Special Court may extend the said period up to one year on the report of the Public Prosecutor indicating the progress of the investigation and the specific reasons for the detention of the accused beyond the said period of one hundred and eighty days.
(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), the offences punishable under this Act with imprisonment for a term of not more than three years may be tried summarily.]
Section 36A, The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (Act 61 of 1985).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Tofan Singh vs The State of Tamil Nadu through the Ineliigence Officer
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Officers designated under Section 53 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 are 'police officers' within the meaning of Section 25 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Consequently, any confessional statement made to such officers is barred from being used as evidence under Section 25 of the Evidence Act. Additionally, a statement recorded under Section 67 of the NDPS Act cannot be used as a confessional statement in the trial of an offence under the NDPS Act, as Section 67 is limited to calling for information and examining persons during an inquiry antecedent to investigation, not for recording confessions as substantive evidence.
On this section: Special Court procedure for taking cognizance upon police report or complaint by authorized officer
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Nunavath Shankar vs The State of Telangana
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When an accused who has been granted bail fails to appear in court and a Non-Bailable Warrant is executed leading to remand to judicial custody, the bail order does not stand automatically cancelled. However, the bonds executed by sureties stand automatically cancelled under Chapter XXXIII Cr.P.C. upon non-appearance of the accused. The proper remedy for the accused to seek bail reinstatement is not to file fresh bail applications, but to file an application or memo before the trial court to pay the penalty of the bond earlier forfeited. Only after payment of such penalty can fresh solvency be entertained for bail reinstatement. The accused must follow this procedure under Chapter XXXIII Cr.P.C., particularly Sections 442 and 450, rather than repeatedly filing bail applications.
On this section: Establishes Special Court that granted original bail to petitioner
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… He has also argued that the appellant is entitled to a default bail since the investigation has not been completed within the period prescribed under Section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short 'CrPC') read with Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short 'NDPS Act'). 8. On the other hand, Mr. K.M. Natraj, learned ASG appearing for the respondents submits that keeping in view the bar of Section 37 of the NDPS Act, no bail can be granted to the appellant. As far as default bail is concerned he …
Questions about Section 36A
What have the courts held on Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act?
Tofan Singh vs The State of Tamil Nadu through the Ineliigence Officer (29 Oct 2020) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Special Court procedure for taking cognizance upon police report or complaint by authorized officer. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below, 1 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2014 to 2020.
How do I find court cases under Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: NDPS Act 36A, section 36A NDPS Act, section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. People searching for it also type ndps 36a 4 and 36a ndps act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Tofan Singh vs The State of Tamil Nadu through the Ineliigence Officer (29 Oct 2020).
What should I read with Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 19 (Punishment for embezzlement of opium by cultivator), section 24 (Punishment for external dealings in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances in contravention of section 12), section 27A (Punishment for financing illicit traffic and harbouring offenders), section 36 (Constitution of Special Court), so none of them can safely be read on its own.
When did Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act come into force?
Section 36A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, cited as NDPS Act 36A, came into force on 14 Nov 1985, having been enacted on 16 Sep 1985. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions1747 words
- 68B. Definitions819 words
- 9. Power of Central Government to permit, control and regulate816 words
- 10. Power of State Government to permit, control and regulate568 words
- 42. Power of entry, search, seizure and arrest without warrant or authorisation507 words
- 31A. Death penalty for certain offences after previous conviction458 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.