It was passed by both the Houses of Parliament, received assent from then President Giani Zail Singh on 16 September 1985, and came into force on 14 November 1985.
[2] The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, an Indo-British study of cannabis usage in India appointed in 1893, found that the "moderate" use of hemp drugs was "practically attended by no evil results at all", "produces no injurious effects on the mind" and "no moral injury whatever".
The report the Commission produced was at least 3,281 pages long, with testimony from almost 1,200 "doctors, coolies, yogis, fakirs, heads of lunatic asylums, bhang peasants, tax gatherers, smugglers, army officers, hemp dealers, ganja palace operators and the clergy.
Ganja and charas were considered by upper class Indians as the poor man's intoxicant, although the rich consumed bhang during Holi.
American pressure increased in the 1980s, and in 1985, the Rajiv Gandhi government succumbed and enacted the NDPS Act, banning all narcotic drugs in India.
[8] Furthermore, some critics point out that under this act, there is a presumption of "culpable mental state", that is, the court will presume that there was an intention to commit a crime.
They claim that this goes against the general principle of the law where people accused of a crime are assumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
[12][13][14] On 2 November 2015, Lok Sabha MP Dharamvir Gandhi announced that he had received clearance from Parliament to table a Private Member's Bill seeking to amend the NDPS Act to allow for the legalised, regulated, and medically supervised supply of "non-synthetic" intoxicants including cannabis and opium.
[20][21] The Amendment also contained measures to improve treatment and care for people dependent on drugs, opened up the processing of opium and concentrated poppy straw to the private sector, and strengthened provisions related to the forfeiture of property of persons arraigned on charges of drug trafficking.
[24][25] Currently, under Section 27 of the NDPS Act, possession of small quantities for personal consumption of drugs is a punishable offence, and can attract a fine of ₹10,000 and imprisonment of six months or both.
[26] The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has recommended decriminalizing of possession of small quantities of drugs for personal use.
The ministry suggested that the NDPS Act be amended to treat the consumer of drugs as victims who ought to be referred for rehabilitation and de-addiction, and not as criminals to be sentenced to jail.