Published on : 12 Nov 2025, 12:43 pm 3 min read

The Kerala High Court recently held that cultivating cannabis plants in pots on the terrace of a rented building amounts to an offence under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act). [Jatin v State of Kerala]

Justice CS Dias observed that even if the cannabis plants are grown in pots rather than directly in the soil, such an act would fall within the meaning of 'cultivating a cannabis plant' as prohibited under Section 8(b) of the NDPS Act and punishable under Section 20(a) of the NDPS Act

The judge clarified that the NDPS Act makes no distinction between growing the plant in earth or in pots and the key factor is the conscious act of growing the plant and nurturing it in violation of the law.

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