Date:29/03/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/29/stories/2008032951710300.htm

Kerala

Crackdown on drug mafia

State and Central agencies should take a concerted effort to stem the flow of drugs into the city, writes
Biju Govind.

The arrest of three persons on charges of drug peddling from the city has raised fears of a closely knit international drug mafia operating in north Kerala.

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) nabbed P.K. Habeeb Rehman and seized from his possession 11 kg. of heroin valued at Rs.11 crore in the global market. The seizure is reported to be one of the biggest hauls effected by the DRI in the State in the past five years. At least 20 kg. of drugs have been seized by the DRI from Kozhikode and Malappuram district in the last three months.

Officials said 5 kg. of the contraband was seized from Rahman’s rented house at Kuthiravattom and the remaining from a house of his relative at Edavannapara. Two others, Kiran Kumar, hailing from Kota in Rajasthan and Guru Darshan Singh Rattan, a Travelling Ticket Examiner attached to the West Central Railway, were also apprehended in this connection. All of them were remanded to judicial custody, said DRI Additional Director Rama Mathew.

She said the culprits were involved in smuggling heroin from Rajasthan and transporting it to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia. Kiran and Rattan had sourced the heroin from Kota and smuggled it into the city by train on Monday. They had handed over the drugs to Rahman at the Malabar Palace.

The heroin was meant to be distributed in smaller packets to retail distributors. Rahman is believed to be the kingpin of drug racket operations in Kozhikode and Edavannapara. The drugs sourced by Rahman were also smuggled by carriers to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Ms. Mathew said.

DRI officials said Rahman procured the heroin from Kota at Rs.2 lakh a kg. After the drugs were transported from Kota to the city, it was smuggled to Dubai and Jeddah from airports at Mumbai and Karipur. They said “gullible” passengers were duped into carrying the contraband in their luggage. Three passengers who were deceived are now lodged at a jail in Jeddah. Earlier Rahman worked in Jeddah and had smuggled drugs to West Asia through his relatives, officials said.

Less than a month ago the State police had registered two cases involved in the smuggling and distribution of drugs in north Kerala. A city police team nabbed Vettikattil Abdul Khader hailing from Pandikkad in Malappuram district from the Martyr’s Column on South beach in the city. Six kg of opium valued at Rs.1 crore in the international market was recovered from him.Abdul Khader was involved in the wholesale distribution of opium in the State. The opium was procured from Mumbai.

In another case, the city police arrested K. Chandran, his wife Qamerunissa and his son-in-law Shabir and seized 650 gm. of brown sugar and two kg of ganja.