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Ludhiana: ‘Illegal rehabs emerging as hiring hubs for gangs’
Rather than providing treatment, these centres were being used to recruit addicts as ‘foot soldiers’ for illicit activities, the SSP said
Khanna Police on Friday rescued over 150 inmates from four unauthorised de-addiction centres—three in Khanna and one in Payal—after intelligence gathered during interrogations of arrested gang members pointed to their exploitation by criminal networks. Several of the rescued individuals were found to have direct links with organised gangs, police said.
Khanna senior superintendent of police Darpan Ahluwalia said, the operation, conducted under Operation Prahar, was launched following statements from associates of gangster Ravi Rajgarh, apprehended earlier in a police encounter, which revealed a disturbing nexus between illegal rehabilitation centres and criminal gangs.
Rather than providing treatment, these centres were being used to recruit addicts as ‘foot soldiers’ for illicit activities, the SSP said. According to the SSP, many rescued inmates had prior criminal records and several proclaimed offenders were apprehended, including an associate of gangster Vicky Marado, wanted in a 2020 Arms Act case. “The existence of these unauthorised centres came to light during questioning of arrested criminals. Drug addicts housed in these centres were being lured into petty crimes and subsequently pushed into organised criminal networks. They were offered paltry sums of money and used as disposable tools,” the SSP said.
She added that while social media had previously been the primary platform for recruiting youth into gangs, criminal outfits have now shifted their strategy. “They are now fishing for manpower in these centres, offering as little as ₹5,000 to participate in illicit activities.”
An FIR has been registered under charges of wrongful confinement, cheating, and Section 26(B) of the NDPS Act following the joint operation conducted in coordination with the health department. “The illegal centres have been sealed and a probe is on,” the SSP said.
