1 day Ago By Raj Shekhar
Delhi Police recently busted a drug cartel. The cartel was smuggling hashish from Himachal Pradesh. Four people were arrested in connection with the case.
NEW DELHI: A waiter, a homemaker, a transporter and a Kyrgyz interior designer were allegedly part of a notorious drug cartel , peddling high-grade hashish, known as ' Malana Cream ', to dealers in the national capital and beyond. Fuzail Sheikh, 26, who worked at a cafe in the picturesque town of Kasol in Himachal Pradesh, allegedly sourced the contraband from the village hinterland. Asma Bano Ansari, a homemaker from Surat, Gujarat, was the mastermind, coordinating the supply chain and recruiting members, police said.
Akash Bisht, from Surat, and his wife Choplon, a citizen of Kyrgyzstan, allegedly handled distribution. Their supply chain was recently disrupted by Delhi Police's crime branch which arrested the quartet. How torrential rain gave a boost to hashish racket They seized a large quantity of hashish, also known as charas, from them.
The operation was conducted after special commissioner Devesh Srivastva ordered a crackdown on the supply of the contraband, known to be popular among students and young professionals. The interrogation of the suspects revealed an interesting trend. The accused disclosed how the torrential rains that recently battered the region had an unexpected consequence — the sole access road to Malana village was rendered impassable, cutting it off from the mainland.
As a result, the harvest of cannabis resin, also known as charas, was exceptionally abundant this year as there was no police crackdown. “The crop was then smuggled out of the village via the treacherous Chandrakhani Pass, a route that is notorious- ly difficult for outsiders to navigate. This allowed the local inhabitants to maintain control over the illegal trade, supplying the charas to traffickers and peddlers who would then distribute it in different parts of the country,” said DCP (crime) Bhisham Singh.
Police gathered information on the interstate syndicate for a few weeks. “A team comprising ACP Arvind Kumar and inspector Robin Tyagi was formed to develop the leads,” DCP Singh added. In the first phase of the operation, Sheikh was arrested at Nizamuddin Railway Station with 807.
5 grams of charas a few days ago. During interrogation, Sheikh told cops that he was acting on behalf of Asma Bano Ansari, who was subsequently arrested from Surat. Police discovered that her son, who ran a chemical drug manufacturing unit, was arrested and jailed in Mumbai.
On Nov 16, cops received information that Bisht, an al- leged member of the drug syndicate, would be transporting hashish from Himachal to Delhi. According to the information, Bisht would be hiding the hashish in various parts of his car and entering Delhi via Singhu border. When intercepted by cops, Bisht attempted to flee by breaking through a barricade.
A high-speed chase followed, and Bisht was finally apprehended near Mahindra Park gurdwara traffic signal in Jahangirpuri. He was driving with Cholpon in the front passenger seat. Despite being ordered to stop and open the car, Bisht tried to flee again.
Police, however, overpowered him after breaking the car windows. When the vehicle was searched, 539.5 grams of charas was found hidden in the headrest and subwoofer.
Police said the investigation is on and they are looking to bust other networks that may be using similar routes..
