Peddlers dragged into public shame march

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The city’s war on narcotics intensified on Monday evening when Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) unit police inspector Geeta Bagwade staged a dramatic public parade of drug peddlers through Katkat Gate, Champa Chowk, and Jinsi.

Handcuffed and humiliated, the accused walked through crowded lanes pleading with folded hands to stop the embarrassment. Citizens, however, applauded the police action, praising the move to expose those “destroying the city’s youth with drugs.”

Three days earlier, the NDPS squad had arrested Irfan Ayyub Ghorwade (36), a medical representative from Nanded, along with Syed Naziruddin of Hattisinghpura and Amjad Khan of Nanded. Officers seized 80 grams of MD drugs and a large stock of intoxicating pills. Investigations have since revealed a widespread drug racket, with police identifying nine key peddlers coordinating with interstate suppliers and over 50 small-time retailers pushing narcotics to college students and unemployed youth. The flow ranges from pills and liquid intoxicants to MD drugs and charas.

On Sunday, City Chowk police arrested Shaikh Amir (35) of Rashidpura while attempting to sell MD near Maulana Azad College. Police seized 23 packets weighing 14.74 grams. He was produced in court by API Dilip Chandan and remanded in custody until September 4.

Chikalthana link resurfaces

Earlier, on August 1, PI Bagwade had arrested Azhar Shaikh (31) of Chikalthana, uncovering a network tied to Aalim, alias Guddu Shaikh, who remains absconding. The Chikalthana link resurfaced in Amir’s interrogation, as he admitted sourcing MD from a local dealer named Yusuf.

According to police, Yusuf supplied 4 grams of MD for Rs 1,000, which Amir, an uneducated youth who dropped out in Class 3, resold to students for Rs 1,500. Amir also claimed that Hyderabad police had recently arrested another Chikalthana-based dealer, a detail now under verification. With arrests mounting, officers say their next challenge is to break the interstate supply chain and shield vulnerable youth from falling prey to addiction.