61
We have many cases of insubordination from
ganja. I think ganja is a more frequent cause of
dismissal and punishment than liquor. The
effects of excessive use of ganja are longer in
duration than those of liquor. A man who is off
his head from drink is generally all right next
day. With ganja it sometimes takes a fortnight.
This refers to excessive indulgence. Saugor is a
particularly bad district for ganja, being on the
borders of Native States. Many of the police are
up-country men, Purbeas, etc.; but I do not
think that more of them use hemp drugs than
local men. In fact, I think low caste local men
are more given to these drugs. I should think
that the consumers of liquor in the Saugor police
are about equal in number to the hemp drug con-
sumers.
Question 12.—About six or eight cases are
annually reported of the ganja or hemp plant
being grown in baris. The excuse is that the seed
is dropped by accident. I think it is generally by
accident. I think the illicit cultivation has now
almost ceased. It used to be more some years ago.
31. Evidence of SARDAR BAHADUR RUTTAN SINGH, Sikh, District Superintendent
of Police, Sambalpur.
51. No. The habit of the drug first commenced
by those given to debauchery owing to being in
bad company and the second are those who have
fallen in and are friendly with fakirs : the latter
seldom or never commit any crime, but in the
former only those who are driven to beggary do
commit petty thefts for the sake of the price of
the drug. It is only those of the low castes that
do so. Therefore the increase of crime is not
owing to the use of the drug. It is generally put
down to those who are addicted to the use of the
drug, as one would most readily believe that it is
their doing.
52. The consumption of these drugs does not
increase violent or petty crime, in fact the men
addicted to it are really fit for nothing, as they
could hardly do any work, and as mentioned in
5 1 , i t i s o n l y t h e v e r y l o w c a s t e s t h a t w o u l d d o s o
and that seldom.
53. No, seldom. But should any one exceed
the amount usually taken, he in a way loses his
senses, and in a quarrel he would strike a man
with anything he might at the time have in his
hand ; (in that state his action would come under
section 95, P. Code) but this is seldom even
done.
54. No. In fact, criminals do not indulge in
drugs, but they would administer the same to their
victims and rob them.
55. Yes, they do ; but they cannot stupefy
them alone with the drug ; they always admix
dhatura seeds. The way this is done ;—they
first mix ganja and dhatura, this they half fill a
chillum, and have it at hand ; when they find a
victim they bring out this chillum, and in his
presence fill it with tobacco; he first smokes and
at once knows when the tobacco is burnt; he then
makes it over to his victim ; on smoking he
smokes the ganja and dhatura and gets quite
stupefied over it.
32. Evidence of RAI BAHADUR PANDIT DINA NATH, Assistant District Superin
-
tendent of Police, Saugor.
51. A large proportion of bad characters, habi-
tual, are moderate consumers of ganja : such per-
sons commit petty thefts and simple hurt cases.
The rule holds equally in the case of opium
smoking and liquor imbibing. I was under the
impression that I must confine my reply to ganja
smoking alone. The connection in my opinion
between ganja and crime is that of cause and
effect. Habitual bad characters are generally idle
men who do no work or can get no work, and as
they have contracted the habit of smoking ganja
and opium and drinking liquor, they do not feel up
to work, but as they must more or less have these
drugs, they are necessitated to commit petty
thefts. I can instance a case in which a man
who was addicted to the consumption of these
drugs was caught red-handed removing a lota.
On search several articles were traced to ganja
and opium shops that he had pawned for a few
pills of opium and ganja. He admitted the
thefts and pointed out the complainants, and said
he was fond of smoking ganja and opium, and as
he could indulge in them just by stealing petty
articles, he had taken to committing petty thefts.
Though he had been several times convicted, yet
the temptation was too much. Twelve petty
thefts were brought to light against him.
52. The use of the intoxicating drugs obtained
from hemp to excess tends to make the consumers
more violent, and violent crimes are often com-
mitted by such men. In this connection, namely,
that ganja causes crimes of violence, I can cite a
case in which a Gond malguzar, who was habi-
tuated to excessive ganja smoking imagined
under the effects of the drug, that his wife was
not going to give him food. This thought work-
ed so strongly in his imagination that he suddenly
picked. up a " pharsi" and rushed upon his wife :
she, however, evaded him. He then ran out into
the street and " ran amok," killing a woman and
a man whom he had never seen before, believing
that the former was his wife and the latter had
set her on not to give him food.
53. Yes, such tribes as " Gond, " " Maria"
and " Punka," etc., often commit un premeditated
crimes, under the influence of excessive indulgence
of these drugs : such tribes are found in Chanda
and Bastar. In one case in Chanda to my know-
ledge, a Gond who was excessively addicted to the
indulgence of these drugs asked his wife for some
water, and on her telling him to help himself to
it, in a sudden fit of homicidal frenzy, murdered
her with an axe and then admitted that he had
done the deed under the effect of ganja.
54. Yes, criminals make use of such drugs and
to give them false courage when they wish to
commit violent crime. In this connection,
have had cases in which Banjaras, when going to
commit dacoity, highway robbery, have previ-
ously smoked ganja or drunk liquor, to give them
courage to commit these offences.
55. Often criminals, in order to further their
designs, induce their victims to partake of these
drugs. But mere ganja will not affect the brain,