Drug case: Baby Patankar discharged

Shashikala Patankar alias Baby Patankar who was arrested in connection with 112 kg of drugs found in possession of police constable Dharmaraj Kaloke at his Satara house, was discharged from the case by the Satara Session's court on Monday. The accused was discharged on the grounds that the reports from the forensic laboratories had turned down the police case of the seized contraband being a psychotropic substance.

After the Satara case, Patankar was also named in a drug seizure case in Mumbai after the police had recovered 12 kg of the alleged drug from Kaloke's Marine drive office.

Advocate Gorakh Liman, who was appearing on behalf Patankar, while speaking to DNA, said that the discharge application in the Satara case was filed on November 16, 2015. However, due to the transfer of judges, it took long for the presiding court to hear and decide on the matter. "The application was filed on three important points. First was the negative reports about the presence of psychotropic substance from the Kalina Forensic Science laboratory (FSL) and Hyderabad FSL. Rather it was found to be ajinomoto. Second point was that the accused cannot be arrested on the basis of the statement of the co-accused. Kalokhe, who in his statement had mentioned that the consignment had allegedly come from Patankar. And the third point was that Mephadrone was a notified psychotropic substance from February 2015, while the seizure was conducted on August 2014."