Act Number: 61

Act Name: The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985

Year: 1985

Enactment Date: 1985-09-16

Long Title: An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to narcotic drugs, to make stringent provisions for the control and regulation of operations relating to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances , to provide for the forfeiture of property derived from, or used in, illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, to implement the provisions of the International Conventions on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and for matters connected therewith.

Ministry: Ministry of Finance

Department: Department of Revenue

Section 35: Presumption of culpable mental state.
    (1) In any prosecution for an offence under this Act which requires a culpable mental state of the accused, the court shall presume the existence of such mental state but it shall be a defence for the accused to prove the fact that he had no such mental state with respect to the act charged as an offence in that prosecution.
     Explanation.-- In this section "culpable mental state" includes intention motive, knowledge of a fact and belief in, or reason to believe, a fact.
     (2) For the purpose of this section , a fact is said to be proved only when the court believes it to exist beyond a reasonable doubt and not merely when its existence is established by a preponderance of probability.
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