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By:

Dr. Abhilash Dawre

19 March 2025 at 5:18:41 pm

Rs 27 crore worth narcotics seized; inter-state cartel uncovered

Thane : In a major breakthrough against drug trafficking, Mumbra police have seized a massive stockpile of mefedrone valued at approximately 27.21 crore. Acting on critical intelligence, the Narcotics Control Unit conducted a special operation extending as far as Madhya Pradesh, resulting in the arrest of five key drug traffickers involved in supplying large quantities of mefedrone to the Thane region.   The operation was led by Assistant Police Inspector Rohit Kedar and Ganesh Jadhav under...

Rs 27 crore worth narcotics seized; inter-state cartel uncovered

Thane : In a major breakthrough against drug trafficking, Mumbra police have seized a massive stockpile of mefedrone valued at approximately 27.21 crore. Acting on critical intelligence, the Narcotics Control Unit conducted a special operation extending as far as Madhya Pradesh, resulting in the arrest of five key drug traffickers involved in supplying large quantities of mefedrone to the Thane region.   The operation was led by Assistant Police Inspector Rohit Kedar and Ganesh Jadhav under the supervision of Senior Police Inspector Anil Shinde. The initial seizure took place near Bilal Hospital, where suspect Basu Sayyed was caught with 23.5 grams of mefedrone. Further interrogation revealed a large-scale supply chain sourcing drugs from Madhya Pradesh.   Subsequently, police arrested Ramsingh Gujjar and Kailas Balai, recovering an additional 3.515 kilograms of mefedrone from their possession. Investigations traced the supply back to two major traffickers Manohar Gurjar and Raju Mansuri based in Madhya Pradesh.   The Mumbra police team then traveled to Madhya Pradesh, arresting both Gurjar and Mansuri and confiscating a staggering 9.956 kilograms of mefedrone from them.   In total, the operation resulted in the seizure of 13.6295 kilograms of mefedrone, with a street value exceeding 27.21 crore. All five accused have been taken into custody.   According to police sources, the arrested individuals have prior records involving serious offenses under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Indian Penal Code, and Arms Act. They were engaged in trafficking mefedrone in bulk quantities from Madhya Pradesh to the Thane region.   This successful operation was carried out under the guidance of ACP Priya Damale (Kalwa Division), Senior Police Inspector Anil Shinde, Crime Inspector Sharad Kumbhar, and supported by the NDPS unit officers and staff of Mumbra Police Station.   Since January this year, Mumbra police’s NDPS unit has conducted 954 seizures and 58 raids, confiscating narcotics worth over 48 crore, significantly impacting drug trafficking activities in the area.

Maharashtra Congress-VBA ally for civic polls

Harshwardhan Sapkal
Harshwardhan Sapkal

Mumbai: In a significant strategic shift, the Maharashtra Congress has formally cleared the decks for need-based, local-level alliances with the long-isolated Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) led by Prakash Ambedkar, for ongoing and upcoming civic elections, top leaders of both sides said.

 

State Congress President Harshwardhan Sapkal said the decision balances the party workers’ strong preference to contest civic polls independently with the political realities at the district level.

 

“The party respects the sentiments of its workers to go solo in the civic elections,” he said, urging them to maintain patience as ground-level plans of action evolve in the coming days.

 

In a subtle snub critique of some partners within the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and the INDIA bloc, Sapkal observed that the alliances performed impressively in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections when they contested unitedly.

 

However, the Congress fared poorly in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly and also in 2025 Bihar Assembly polls, despite a broad coalition of 10 parties in Bihar, besides the earlier debacle in Haryana. These repeated setbacks have caused disquiet among party cadres, he said.

 

The Bihar outcome, Sapkal hinted, was particularly disheartening because of what he termed as the alleged “vote-theft” - now being widely debated in both state and national political circles and the social media.

 

Against the backdrop of the consecutive electoral defeat the mood among Congress workers has shifted decisively toward contesting the state civic polls independently, and the party officially announced the stance for BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls last week.

 

“The field activists’ sentiments must be respected.  We have authorised district leaders to form suitable alliances with the VBA, which has also taken a similar position. Local leadership has begun discussions accordingly. If any obstacles arise, senior leaders from both sides will intervene and resolve them,” Sapkal reaffirmed.

 

A senior Mumbai Congress functionary added that while the city unit intends to contest the BMC polls solo, its doors are “wide open” to engaging with the VBA if necessary.

 

Meanwhile, Sapkal emphasized that the Congress’ broader ideological alignment with MVA partners remains intact, though any understanding with Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) is effectively ruled out.

 

“The Congress’ ideological battle is against the BJP-RSS-Capitalists, who believe only a handful should prosper. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has already blown the conch for the biggest struggle against this mindset,” Sapkal said.

 

He urged all like-minded parties to join this fight to protect democracy and uphold the ideals of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, and Mahatma Jyotirao Phule.

 

VBA wooed in civic polls

VBA Vice-President Siddharth Mokle said the alliance had already crystallised in Buldhana, while discussions were underway in several other districts.

 

“Once district leaders send us a proposal, we clear it. The field-workers in both parties believe this partnership can yield rich political dividends. However, if the election authorities play foul, then even God himself cannot help anybody,” Mokle chuckled, chatting with The Perfect Voice.

 

Prior to the 2024 Parliament polls, the VBA had claimed considerable strength in 18 of Maharashtra’s 48 Lok Sabha constituencies and had made repeated attempts to join the MVA. It was brutally spurned both times, even as the MVA suffered massive setbacks in the Assembly elections.

 

Gently flexing muscles again, Mokle asserted that in the past couple of years, “the VBA has expanded its organisational and electoral base manifold”, which will become evident in any free and fair election.

 

 


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