Drug peddlers identified with intel-based study: SSP Baramulla

Baramulla, Jan 15: Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Baramulla, Amod Ashok Nagpure Monday said that Police in Baramulla have conducted an intelligence-based comprehensive study of the district through which they have identified numerous hardcore drug peddlers.

Talking to media persons on the sidelines of an event, SSP Baramulla said that actions were being taken against these hardcore drug peddlers.

“If anyone harbours the misconception that they will remain silent or go into hiding at far-off places, and Police won’t be able to catch them, they are mistaken. We want to dispel such misconceptions and inform them that they can’t run away from the Police,” SSP Baramulla said.

He said that a notorious hardcore drug peddler Mohammad Ayoub Shah of LadooraRafiabad was apprehended by Police on Monday.

“A substantial quantity of heroin was also seized from him. He had been evading arrest for a long time and engaging in supply of drugs across various areas,” he said.

Nagpure said that he was apprehended through an intelligence-based operation and strict legal actions would be taken against him under the NDPS Act.

“Any illegal properties acquired by him through drug trade will be attached. A warning is issued to others involved in this trade to refrain from these activities,” he said.

The SSP Baramulla said that the Police are relentless in their efforts, and with their vigilant actions, the drug peddlers cannot escape the Police dragnet.

About the success of the operation all-out campaign launched by the Police to curb the menace of substance abuse, he said that they were now at a stage in the war against drugs where they were capturing significant ground, reclaiming territories, and dismantling the drug networks in notorious areas that were considered gateways for drug trafficking in Baramulla district.

“The Police successfully apprehended a considerable number of drug peddlers last year, and legal action has been taken against them under the NDPS Act. Their properties were seized as well,” Nagpure said.

He said that this year, within the first 15 days, around 17 to 18 drug peddlers including a hardcore female drug peddler had already been arrested.

“The objective is to make Baramulla a drug-free district,” he said.

The SSP Baramulla said that the drug epidemic in Kashmir had been spreading for a long time through a special design sponsored by Pakistan.

“The enemy’s goal is to turn the local population into addicts and make them weak. Some elements within the region have become a part of this ill-design but we aim to break down this network so that the enemy country receives no support here, regardless of their efforts,” he said.