Panchkula, March 10 -- A 2020 drug case involving the alleged recovery of 50 gm of heroin has collapsed in a Panchkula court due to serious lapses in investigation by Panchkula police. The court of additional sessions judge held that a delay of six days in sending the sample to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and the failure to prepare the forensic form at the spot proved fatal to the prosecution's case, as the possibility of tampering with the sample could not be ruled out. While granting the benefit of doubt to the accused, the court observed that the prosecution failed to substantiate the charges against him and "miserably failed to prove its case beyond all reasonable doubt". As a result, the court acquitted the accused, Safal, a resident of Manakpur Thakur Dass, Pinjore. He had been booked by the Sector-14 police station under Section 21 of the NDPS Act on July 24, 2020. According to the police version, the complainant along with HC Pardeep Kumar, HC Dhani Ram and constable Amit Kumar were on crime detection patrol at Sector-12A, Railly Chowk, on July 24, 2020. During the patrol, they allegedly received information that the accused was selling heroin and was standing in the parking area of Sector 12A, Railly village. The police claimed that the accused was searched and 50 gm heroin was recovered from the right pocket of his lower, following which he was arrested under the NDPS Act. However, due to the investigative lapses and lack of procedural compliance, the court ultimately acquitted the accused on March 6. Inspector Karambir Singh, the then in-charge of Crime Branch, Sector 19, was the complainant in the case. A total of 13 prosecution witnesses were examined during the trial, out of which 11 were police officials. The court noted that the accused was allegedly apprehended from a busy public place. Despite the presence of members of the public, the investigating officers failed to associate any independent witness in the investigation. Inspector Karambir Singh, the first investigating officer (IO), admitted during cross-examination that the place of recovery was an open market and that members of the general public were present at the spot. However, he did not bring in any independent witness during the investigation and even failed to involve local shopkeepers from the area. Similarly, sub-inspector Bijender Singh, the second IO in the case, also stated during cross-examination that he did not associate any independent witness in the investigation despite their availability, which could have lent credibility to the alleged heroin recovery. The court observed that the failure to join independent witnesses at the time of the alleged recovery, despite their availability, cast serious doubt on the prosecution's case. Another major lapse noted by the court was the delay in sending the seized sample to the forensic laboratory. ASI Vikramjeet Singh testified that he deposited the parcel at the forensic science laboratory, Madhuban, on July 30, 2020. This indicated a delay of six days in sending the sample for examination. The court pointed out that the prosecution failed to provide any explanation for withholding the sample for six days, describing it as a serious lacuna in the case. Furthermore, the court observed that the CFSL form was not prepared at the spot....