Kolkata, Nov 5 — The Narcotics Cell of the Kolkata Police Detective Department has arrested three persons and seized over 14.5 kg of ganja during a raid near Dharmatala bus stand in central Kolkata, officials said on Thursday.
Acting on specific intelligence, officers of the Narcotics Cell conducted a raid in the Maidan Police Station area on Wednesday and apprehended three suspects near the PWD Site Office (South Division) adjoining the Dharmatala bus stand.
The arrested accused have been identified as Abdul Haque alias Babu (48), Anju Sheikh (32) and Attabur Sheikh (27), all residents of Murshidabad district in West Bengal. Of these, Abdul and Anju are residents of Keshabpur area of Islampur police station in Murshidabad, while Attabur's home is in Nandigram village of Ranitala police station in the same district.
A total of 14.559 kg of ganja was recovered from the joint custody of the three. The investigators seized the drug by following all legal procedures and made videos of the incident in the presence of witnesses and gazetted officers.
Later, a case was registered at Maidan police station on Thursday under sections 20(B)(2)(B) and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS), based on the complaint of Sub-Inspector Prashant Kumar Roy of the Narcotics Cell of the Detective Department of the Kolkata police.
In the initial interrogation, the investigators learned that the arrested persons had brought a huge quantity of ganja from Narla in Kalahandi district of Odisha. Their aim was to sell it to drug dealers in Kolkata and its surrounding areas.
All three arrested were produced in court on Thursday. Detectives are investigating who else is involved in this smuggling ring and whether they have already been in touch with other members of the gang.