NEW DELHI: A joint team of Gujarat
anti-terror squad
(ATS) and the
Narcotics Control Bureau
(NCB), in coordination with the
Indian Coast Guard
, has seized 86 kg of suspected heroin worth over Rs 600 crore from a
Pakistani fishing vessel
off
Porbandar coast
and arrested its 14-member, all-Pakistani crew.
The action — undertaken as part of Operation Sagarmanthan series that aims to make India drug-free, besides being timed during the polls that involve tighter scrutiny against movement of potential voter inducements like unexplained cash, drugs and liquor — followed a tip-off received by Gujarat ATS that a Pakistani drug operative named Haji Aslam alias Babu Baloch would be sending Pakistani fishing boat ‘Alraza’, bearing registration number 339-BB-BFD, from Karachi harbour to deliver 100 kgs of a narcotic substance like heroin or methamphetamine.
As per the information, the vessel was to hit the Indian waters off Porbandar coast, during the intervening night of April 25 and 26 and the said contraband was to be delivered to a Dhow from Tamil Nadu to be further delivered to Sri Lanka-based drug operatives.
Based on this information, a joint team of Gujarat ATS boarded an Indian Coast Guard ship and commenced an operation from Porbandar by moving towards the indicated point of exchange. During the intervening night of April 25 and 26, a suspicious vessel was spotted in the Indian waters, 180 NM off Porbandar, Gujarat, which the Indian Coast Guard and Gujarat ATS team tried to board. However, the team was obstructed by crew of the suspect Pakistani vessel. To restrain the crew and stop the fleeing vessel, firepower was used in which one member of the crew of the vessel sustained bullet injuries.
The suspect Pakistani fishing boat, ‘Alraza’ was carrying 14 crew members, all Pakistani nationals. A search revealed contraband material. The boat and crew were brought to Porbandar for further legal procedures.
The joint team of Gujarat ATS and NCB(Operations), New Delhi, upon a thorough search of the vessel, recovered 78 boxes of contraband suspected to be heroin weighing roughly 86 kh, worth nearly Rs 602 crore in the international market.
This is the biggest narcotics seizure in the country during the current Lok Sabha election. NCB further described it as the third successful big maritime operation by its Operations unit and ATS Gujarat in the last 70 days. Earlier in February this year, 3,300 kg of narcotics was seized in Sagarmanthan I, followed by seizure of 62 kg drugs as part of Sagarmanthan II in March.
The 14 Pakistani nationals arrested in the latest operation have been identified as Nazeer Hussain, Mohammed Siddiq, Ameer Hussain, Salal, Aman, Badhal Khan, Abdul Rashid, Lal Bux, Chakar Khan, Qadir Bux, Abdul Samad, M Hakeem, Noor Muhamnmad Arf Noro and Muhammad Khan.
All the detained individuals are residents of Julubi Maveli, Lasbella, Baluchistan, Pakistan. The master of the boat, Nazir Hussain Azam Khan aged 62, who had suffered bullet injury during the mid-sea operation was evacuated for further medical care. He has been operated upon and is presently in stable condition.
The further legal procedures and investigation into this international drug network are being undertaken by NCB.
