Delhi: Sikkim-based man arrested in Rs 13,000 crore drug trafficking case
New Delhi (PTI): The Special Cell of the Delhi Police has arrested a key accused from Sikkim in connection with a massive Rs 13,000 crore international narcotics smuggling case linked to the seizure of a massive consignment of cocaine, mephedrone and Thai marijuana, an official said on Monday.
The accused, Tilak Prasad Sharma (35), a resident of East Pendam in Sikkim, was apprehended after a sustained inter-state operation following the execution of a non-bailable warrant issued against him by a Delhi court, police said.
Sharma was wanted in an FIR registered at a Special Cell police station in 2024 under various provisions of the NDPS Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Police said the case pertains to the recovery of 1,290 kg of cocaine and mephedrone and 40 kg of Thai marijuana, exposing the operations of an international drug cartel with links spanning Pakistan, the UK, Malaysia, Thailand, the UAE and India.
"So far, 17 accused have been arrested in the case, while several others, including foreign-based handlers, are still absconding," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Amit Kaushik said in a statement.
Police said Sharma played a crucial role as a courier in the syndicate. During the investigation, it emerged that he was actively involved in smuggling suitcases containing Thai marijuana from Thailand to India on multiple occasions.
After landing in Delhi, the contraband was allegedly handed over to Himanshu, an associate of another accused, Tushar Goyal. Two suitcases containing Thai marijuana were later recovered from a godown in Mahipalpur linked to Goyal, he said.
According to the police, further revealed that following the arrest of key cartel members in Delhi in the first week of October 2024, the syndicate's kingpin instructed Sharma to alter his travel route to evade law enforcement agencies. He was directed to travel from Thailand to Sri Lanka, then to Nepal and thereafter to India.
During this period, Sharma was apprehended by Nepal Customs at an airport with Thai marijuana and was lodged in a jail in Kathmandu. However, police said local inquiries revealed that he escaped from the Nepal jail during a phase of unrest and subsequently returned to India.
"After his return, Sharma allegedly went underground, frequently changing locations and concealing his identity to avoid arrest. A Special Cell team was later dispatched to Sikkim to execute the non-bailable warrant. On reaching his native village, the team found that no family members were residing there. Further inputs indicated that he had shifted to Namchi East in south Sikkim," the officer said.
With the assistance of local police, Sharma was traced, apprehended and produced before a local court, from where a transit remand was obtained. He was subsequently produced before a Delhi court.
Police said Sharma had studied up to Class 10 and completed an ITI course in the fitter trade. He had earlier worked as a machine operator in a pharmaceutical company in Sikkim and later travelled to Dubai on a tourist visa in search of employment, where he allegedly came in contact with members of the international narcotics syndicate.
Legal proceedings are underway, and efforts are being intensified to track down other absconding members of the cartel, including international handlers and suppliers.
A police source said that the mastermind of the syndicate, Virendra Basoya, is currently abroad, and a Red Corner Notice has been issued against his son, Rishabh, who is also outside the country. Further investigation into the matter is underway.
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Tamil Nadu Assembly to meet on Jan 20
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Assembly's first session for the year 2026 is all set to commence on January 20 with Governor R N Ravi's customary address to the House on schedule.
With the Assembly election due by April this year, the session is expected to be more tumultuous than during non-election years and the main opposition AIADMK is set to aggressively target the government.
The Assembly session is set to commence at 9.30 AM in the Fort St George Secretariat campus.
It remains to be seen whether Governor Ravi will deliver the address, having walked out of the House for the third consecutive year in 2025. Ravi had said the national anthem should have been played at the commencement of the session. In 2022, when Ravi made his maiden address to the House, the main opposition AIADMK had walked out of the House.
Ravi, who has locked horns with the DMK regime over several issues, assumed office as the 26th Governor of Tamil Nadu on September 18, 2021, and the DMK assumed power that year after being in opposition for a decade (2011-21).
According to officials, traditionally, in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, the 'Tamil Thai Valthu', the invocation to Mother Tamil is sung at the commencement; following which the Governor would read out the address and the national anthem is played at the end.
In 2025, Ravi walked out of the House without reading the address and the Lok Bhavan had said: "When the national anthem was not sung or played at the commencement of the Governor's address, Governor respectfully reminded the House of its Constitutional duty and fervently appealed to the Chief Minister and Speaker for singing or playing the national anthem."
The Bhavan had said the request was not complied with. Not singing or playing the national anthem at the beginning of the Governor’s address was a blatant disrespect to the Constitution and the national anthem. "In deep anguish, Governor left the House," the Governor's office had said.
In 2024, Ravi declined to read out the customary inaugural address of the House, prepared by the DMK government, and also walked out of the Assembly. The Lok Bhavan, later said the address had numerous passages with misleading claims far from truth and and "reading them would have amounted to the Governor’s address becoming a constitutional travesty."
The Governor's office had also said Speaker M Appavu had launched a tirade against Ravi and called him a "follower of Nathuram Godse and more."
In 2023, Ravi walked out of the House abruptly while CM Stalin pointed to deviation from the government prepared text as the Governor avoided references like the Dravidian model of governance. The chief minister piloted a resolution to have on House record only the pre-approved, state prepared text and it was adopted.
