Gurdev Samra pleading guilty to growing 1,200 opium poppy plants

Samra, 63, was handed a one-year conditional sentence after pleading guilty to growing 1,200 opium poppy plants at his home on Eldorado Close N.E., which was busted by police last July.The judge took a dim view of the poppy garden, despite the fact cultivation of the plants was for personal use in tea -- something Samra had done since he was a youngster in India.Clearly, there is no place in Canadian society for growth of this product," provincial court Judge William Cummings said. "It is completely offensive to the community. . . . A loud message has to be sent."Indeed, a local expert on the the opium poppy said consuming the plant's seeds is far different than something like the medicinal use of marijuana."The idea of nipping these things in the bud is a good thing," said U of C professor Peter Facchini, who recently received a $650,000 grant for three years of research into the medicinal uses of opium poppy.Opium is a narcotic formed from the resin released when the pods of seeds are broken open. It's used to make pharmaceuticals such as morphine.But it's also an illicit drug, most commonly used to make heroin, a powerful and highly addictive drug.
Although there's no mistaking the swaths of opium poppies grown in places like Afghanistan, many Canadians probably wouldn't know if they had the plants growing in their own gardens -- let alone what to do with the seeds from the flowers.
Samra did, though."Mr. Samra was using the product from the plants in his tea," his lawyer, David Chow, told the judge."He has been in Canada for 16 years, the last seven in Calgary, but this is something he has used since he was a youngster in India," Chow said.
"It is very much a cultural byproduct of his previous environment."
Nevertheless, the judge said although it was a unique set of circumstances, the matter was serious.
Cummings placed Samra under house arrest for the first four months of the sentence, then under a curfew for the last eight months.He must submit to random searches of his person, vehicle and home, as well as attend counselling for substance abuse, and abstain from alcohol and drugs.Samra also must perform 50 hours of community service "to convey the message that these substances are not tolerated," added Cummings.Samra did not make any comment when given the opportunity by the judge before being sentenced.A second charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking was withdrawn following the guilty plea.
The university's Facchini -- who is authorized to study only 100 plants under strict conditions -- agreed that opium use is not uncommon in parts of India, where it is legally grown.He said there are likely others in Calgary doing the same as Samra.
"There's no doubt there are (others). You have a culturally very diverse country, and if you look into the popularity, or the use of opium as a recreational drug, culturally in India it's very common.