Gang that trafficked cannabis to Delhi, liquor in Bihar busted

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police on Thursday said they have busted an alleged interstate gang of smugglers that trafficked cannabis (ganja) into Delhi from Odisha in goods vehicles via Bihar and took back liquor from the national capital region to Bihar, where alcohol is banned.

Three members of the syndicate were arrested from southwest Delhi’s Dwarka with a truck in which they had allegedly smuggled 700 kg of ganja from Bihar after procuring the same from Odisha. Cannabis worth around ₹70 lakh was hidden in the truck.

Police said this is one of the biggest seizures of ganja in Delhi in the recent months. The seized consignment was to be delivered to drug peddlers in Delhi and neighbouring states, police said.

Bhisham Singh, deputy commissioner of police (crime), said this syndicate is headed by Vipin Kumar, who runs drug and liquor mafia from Patna in Bihar. Vipin allegedly procured cannabis from Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh for distribution in Delhi and other adjoining states.

“The money earned from selling cannabis was used to buy liquor from Delhi and Haryana for distribution in Bihar that has been declared a dry state. Vipin has more than 50 members in his syndicate spread over many states,” said Singh. Singh described this modus operandi as a form of ‘barter’.

According to Singh, Ravi Kumar,25, Munna Kumar Jha,30, and Gaya Pal,62, were arrested on June 3 following information that a large consignment of cannabis was trafficked into Delhi from Odisha and its destination was Goyala Dairy in Dwarka.

“A trap was set and the truck was stopped after we spotted it coming towards Goyala Dairy. We searched the truck and recovered 700kg of ganja that was stuffed in a cavity. Three men, including the driver, were arrested,” said DCP Singh.

During the interrogation, the truck driver, Gaya Pal, told police that he was promised Rs 25,000 for the trip. Ravi and Munna told police that they were bootleggers and used to supply liquor to Vipin in Patna from Haryana in their Honda City car. After an accident some months ago, Vipin employed them as his distributor of ganja in Delhi-ncr.

DCP Singh said that Vipin procured cannabis from his contacts in Maoist affected states for ₹1,500 per kg and sold it for ₹10,000 per kg to dealers in Delhi, Gurugram, Samalkha, Ghaziabad, Meerut and Noida. “The revenue generated is used to buy liquor from licenced godowns in Haryana and Punjab. We have learnt that some godown owners accepted the drug as payment for the liquor they delivered. The consignment of liquor is then supplied to Bihar in the same truck,” an investigating officer said.