29 offenders convicted in drug trafficking cases this year: Shah
The conviction orders by different courts in cases of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) across the country happened in the first two months of this year, with punishment ranging from one year to 15 years behind bars.
Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday said 29 drug traffickers were convicted by different courts in 12 cases and reiterated that the Centre is unsparing in punishing such offenders as part of the government’s zero tolerance policy against narcotics.
The conviction orders by different courts in cases of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) across the country happened in the first two months of this year, with punishment ranging from one year to 15 years behind bars. In at least two different cases, five men were sentenced to 15 years. The cases were busted by the NCB between 2018 and 2024. The cases include last year’s case of a man from Jharkhand arrested on January 4, 2024, who was sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment on February 21 this year.
Shah said in a statement on X: “As a result of fool proof investigation with a bottom to top approach and top to bottom strategy, 29 drug traffickers have been convicted by courts in 12 different cases across India. We pledge to continue combating the drug menace with ruthless and meticulous investigation to build a drug free Bharat.”
The Centre has vowed to make India drug-free by 2047 and as part of its drive against drug smuggling it has given more teeth to the NCB and got different agencies to crack down on mass supply of drugs into India. Last year, the Centre created additional posts at senior levels in the NCB and has got additional director general rank officers in the agency’s legal wing to track the cases in court and bring them to their logical conclusion.
The sanctioned strength of NCB has also been increased to 1,496 with the creation of 425 new posts in different categories. NCB officials have said that the Centre in its bid to have a nationwide presence of the force has approved opening of regional and zonal offices in different states and UTs. Regional offices have been increased from three to seven with new ones in Amritsar, Guwahati, Chennai and Ahmedabad. The agency has also opened zonal offices in Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh), Siliguri (West Bengal), Agartala (Tripura), Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh), and Raipur (Chhattisgarh),
According to a home ministry press statement shared by the PIB, the conviction orders include a 2021 case when two men were arrested by the NCB’s Indore zone for smuggling 152.66kg of marijuana from Vishakhapatnam to Jhansi. The two men along with the recipient and owner of the vehicle were sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on February 22.
