Ganja Consumption and Law of Bangladesh

Part-1
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, including Ganja in Bangladesh. Ganja and Marijuana are produced from different parts of the same plant. It is the most widely used illicit substance globally and is produced in virtually every country on the planet. Ganja has been used for spiritual, medicinal and recreational purposes since early humankind.

According to a UN report, worldwide, there are an estimated 200 million past year users of cannabis in 2019, corresponding to 4.0 per cent of the global population aged 15-64. The annual prevalence of the use of cannabis remains highest in North America (14.5 per cent), the sub region of Australia and New Zealand (12.1 per cent), and West and Central Africa (9.4 per cent).The World Drug Report 2016 reveals that in Americas, Ganja is the most popular illicit substance with 8.4% users of theUS population.

In Asia, however, Ganaga consumption is still below the average world consumption and reaches 1.9% of the population aged 15-64.According to United Nation survey report some 65 lakh people in Bangladesh are drug addicts, 13 per cent are female, and rest 87 per cent are male. A study on students of Dhaka University finds that commonly used substances are cannabis (44%) and phensidyl (44%).

With the passage of The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 is an international treaty,Ganja has been classified as one of the most dangerous psychoactive substances and prohibit the production and supply and consumption. UN Drug reports further show that there has been an annual increase of the worldwide use of Ganga.

This trend evidently shows that the existing legal policy against the Ganga use, illicit production, distribution and trafficking is failing. This failure can be largely associated with the internationally unbalanced regulation of the production and consumption of these substances. Although internationally Ganga was strictly prohibited, but many countries in their national law systems de facto recognize it as less harmful substance and apply much more tolerant policies.

This disharmonized and disproportionate law regime leads to consequences that Ganga is the most widespread illicit drug it the world.
The cultivation, sale, and possession of Ganja for recreational purposes are illegal in Bangladesh, but possession of cannabis for personal use is tolerated in Bangladesh.Bangladesh banned the cultivation of cannabis in 1987, and banned its sale in 1989. The current Narcotics Control Act 1990 gives the courts discretionary authority to impose the death sentence for possession of cannabis over two kilograms.

The enforcement effort of the law is lax and the drug continues to be produce and consume. The section 9 of the Narcotics Control Act, apart from alcohol, cultivation, producing, manufacturing, carrying, transporting, exporting, importing, delivering, buying, selling, bearing, preserving, displaying, storing of all other drugs and plants are prohibited except the ingredients for the manufacturing of the drugs.

If any of these prohibited drugs are required for purpose of producing any medicine or any scientific research then the government may provide a license in this regard.Despite such harsh law, Ganja is still cultivated, particularly in the districts of Naogaon, Rajshahi, Jamalpur and Netrokona in the northwestern region, as well as the hilly districts near Cox's Bazaar, Bandarban, Khagrachhari and Rangamati.

During British period, Naogaon, a district of Bangladesh was the single largest cultivation zone of Cannabis in colonial sub-continent. The "Naogaon Ganja Cultivators' Cooperative Society limited" which was registered in 1917, was arguably the most successful cooperative in this region.The cooperative society obtained sole monopoly award from the British government and allowed it to control all sales of Ganja.

They sold Ganja only to the licensed vendors at a rate that was fixed by the Commissionerof Excise and redistributed profits annually for the benefit of the public.There is a worldwide interest in the use of Ganja sativa for biomedicine purposes. Ganja has ethnomedicinal usage as a natural medicine in Bangladesh and cultivated during the British Empire period for revenues.
(Part-2 next Sunday)


M S Siddiqui is Legal Economist.