Traveler who spent 57 days in jail over airport security mixup is awarded $9,000
The man was travelling through Bhopal airport in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh (Getty Images)
A businessman spent 57 days in jail after airport security equipment mistakenly identified common cooking spices as heroin at Bhopal airport.
The man was arrested under India‘s Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act when explosive trace detection machines flagged garam masala and aamchur as containing heroin and a psychotropic substance.
Samples were initially sent to a regional forensic laboratory, which could not test for the substance, and then to a central lab in Hyderabad, which eventually confirmed no contraband was present.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court ruled the state vicariously liable for violating the man’s fundamental right to liberty, citing inadequate forensic infrastructure as the reason for his prolonged detention.
The court awarded the businessman 10 lakh rupees (£9,000) in compensation, to be paid within three months, and stated he could pursue further civil damages.
