Justices M M Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh made the order on Thursday, saying the criminal case against Yadav couldn’ may be continued in court because of many problems with the police complaint and the chargesheet.
What the Supreme Court Decided
The court said the complaint made under the Wildlife (Protection) Act wasn’t submitted by someone who had the right to do so, and that is a necessary thing for this kind of crime to be considered valid. Because of this alone, the parts of the case based on the Wildlife Act had no legal basis, the justices said.
They also pointed out that the sections of the Indian Penal Code used against Yadav were based on a previous FIR filed in Gurugram where the police had already said there wasn’t enough evidence to continue with the case. As for the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, the court said the liquid taken from someone else involved in the case wasn’t one of the specifically listed drugs, so the NDPS Act couldn’t be used.
Legal Basis and Previous Cases
The ruling used previous court decisions that emphasize the need for proper legal standing and specific definitions in the law for wildlife and drug prosecutions. The judges said that an unauthorized complaint and not having a proper legal classification of the substance basically ruined the case from the start.
Yadav’s lawyer said that no snakes, drugs or psychotropic substances were found on Yadav himself, and the investigators didn’t prove any connection between him and the other person involved. The High Court had previously refused to stop the chargesheet, but the Supreme Court found the legal problems to be very important.
Case History and What Happened When
The FIR against Yadav was filed on November 22, 2023, after people claimed snake venom was used at a party in Noida. Yadav was arrested on March 17, 2024, as part of the investigation into the claim that it was used at parties with both people from the area and people from other countries.
What This Means for Police and People with a Large Following
On August 6 of the year before, the Supreme Court paused the case at the trial court while the case went to higher courts. The chargesheet claimed snake venom was being used as a drug at rave parties, and many courts questioned this claim.
