Bengaluru, July 14 Maharashtra Police have arrested an associate of Karnataka Minister for RDPR, IT and BT, Priyank Kharge, on charges of drug peddling.
The arrested individual has been identified as Lingaraj Kanni, president of the Kalaburagi South Block Congress Unit. The arrest was made by the Thane police in Maharashtra.
According to the police, he was apprehended in Thane city while in possession of narcotic substances and allegedly attempting to sell them. He was also found in possession of a banned Codeine-based syrup of 120 bottles.
A case has been registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act at the Bazarpeth Police Station
Further details are awaited as investigations continue.
Besides Priyank Kharge, Lingaraj Kanni is also known to be a close aide of Congress MLA Allamaprabhu Patil.
Kanni had joined the Congress during the 2023 Karnataka State Assembly elections. He was previously affiliated with the BJP.
Earlier, the First Information Report (FIR) was registered by the Station Bazar police in Kalaburgi in connection with the suicide of a contractor, Sachin, who was allegedly harassed by the associates of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge in December 2024.
Sachin, a contractor from Bidar, died by suicide on December 26, 2024, reportedly after receiving threats to his life and being pressured for money by Raju Kapnoor, a former Congress corporator and a close associate of Minister Priyank Kharge.
The Station Bazar police registered the FIR on December 28, 2024, naming Raju Kapnoor and others, following a protest by the BJP.
Sachin left a seven-page suicide note alleging harassment by Raju Kapnoor. The Bidar Railway Police Station had filed a case against Raju and others based on a complaint by Sachin’s sister, Savita.
Opposition leader in the Karnataka Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, accused Kalaburgi district in-charge Minister Priyank Kharge of abusing his power and demanded his resignation and arrest in connection with the suicide case of the contractor. He further alleged that the Kharge family was running a “republic” in their native Kalaburgi.
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