criminal-law india indian-constitutional-law indian-penal-code drugs
Is there a law in India that determines the punishment on the basis of quantity of narcotic drugs possessed by a person?
<p>Suppose a person was found with 1kg of a narcotic drugs and another person with say 1000kgs does the punishment for the crime differ for both the people accused?</p>

<p><strong>Is there a law in India that determines the punishment on the basis of quantity of narcotic drugs possessed by a person?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Yes</strong></p>
<p>The Indian Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 provides a sliding scale for various quantities but as you do not specific which drug(s) are involved,  let's use prepared opium as an example at <a href="https://www.indiacode.nic.in/show-data?actid=AC_CEN_2_2_00029_198561_1517807326222&amp;sectionId=25119&amp;sectionno=17&amp;orderno=21" rel="nofollow noreferrer">s.17 of that Act:</a></p>
<blockquote>
<ol start="17">
<li>Punishment for contravention in relation to prepared opium. -</li>
</ol>
<p>Whoever, in contravention of any provision of this Act or any rule or order made or condition of licence granted thereunder, manufactures, <strong>possesses</strong>, sells, purchases, transports, imports inter-State, exports inter-State or uses prepared opium shall be punishable,--</p>
<ul>
<li><p>(a) where the contravention involves <strong>small quantity, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year</strong>, or with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees, or with both; or</p>
</li>
<li><p>(b) where the contravention involves <strong>quantity lesser than commercial quantity but greater than small quantity, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years</strong>, and with fine which may extend to one lakh rupees; or</p>
</li>
<li><p>(c) where the contravention involves <strong>commercial quantity, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to twenty years</strong>, and shall also be liable to fine which shall not be less than one lakh rupees but which may extend to two lakh rupees:</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Provided that the court may, for reasons to be recorded in the judgment, impose a fine exceeding two lakh rupees.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Whether the quantities are determined by the court to be <em>small</em>, <em>lesser than commercial</em>, or <em>commercial</em> will depend on the evidence such as previous convictions, trafficking paraphernalia, the defendant's drug usage etc, as well as the actual weight.</p>
