The appellant Devi Chand was convicted by the Special Judge, Chamba, under Section 20(b)(ii)(B) of the NDPS Act for possession of 446 grams of charas (an intermediate quantity), and was sentenced to 5 years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹50,000. He appealed to the Himachal Pradesh High Court, arguing that the Trial Court failed to consider mitigating factors, particularly his voluntary guilty plea, his status as a first-time offender with no criminal antecedents, and that the contraband was for personal use. The High Court, applying the principle of proportionality as laid down in Uggarsain v. State of Haryana (2023) 8 SCC 109 and Israfil v. State of M.P. (2026 SCC OnLine SC 1189), held that the voluntary guilty plea reflecting genuine remorse was a significant mitigating factor that the Trial Court had not adequately considered. Accordingly, the High Court modified the sentence, reducing it to 4 years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹40,000, with 9 months simple imprisonment in default of fine payment.