Mangaluru drug racket: nine more medicos held, total arrests touch 29
Mangaluru police arrested nine more medicos, including two doctors, taking total arrests in the drug racket to 29, of which 22 are from the medical fraternity.
Mangaluru police have arrested nine more people in connection with the drug racket involving medical students, taking the total number of arrests in the case to 29. Of those held so far, 22 belong to the medical fraternity.
The nine arrested on January 20 include two practising doctors — Siddartha Pavaskar, 29, who works at Srinivas Hospital, and Sudheendra, 34, of Durga Sanjeevini hospital in Mangaluru.
The remaining seven are students of Kasturba Medical College (KMC), Mangaluru. They are Vidush Kumar, 27, of Uttar Pradesh, an MS student; Suryajithdev, 20, of Kerala, a third-year MBBS student; Aysha Mohammed, 23, of Kerala; Pranay Nataraj, 24, of Telangana; Chaithanya R. Tumuluri, 23, of Telangana; and Ish Midda, 27, of Uttar Pradesh, all MBBS students; and Sharanya, 23, from Delhi, a BDS internship student.
All nine were remanded in judicial custody.
Police Commissioner N. Shashi Kumar said the investigation is focused on tracing where the drugs — cannabis, marijuana and ganja — came from and how they were distributed. Officers are examining the contacts of the main accused, Neel Kishorilal Ramji Shah, a UK citizen of Indian origin and a dental student in a city college, and are arresting those who procured and consumed cannabis.
"Some have switched off their mobile phones. Efforts are being made to trace them," Mr. Kumar said, adding that the case is being investigated thoroughly given its sensitivity.
Most of those arrested, including the nine held on January 20, have tested positive for cannabis consumption. The commissioner said peddlers reached medicos, paramedics, engineering students and others through a network, and that the role of each arrested person would become clear when the charge sheet is filed.
Drug abuse in the region has risen since offline classes resumed in Dakshina Kannada, which has eight medical colleges and several other professional institutions.
Mr. Kumar said educational institutions should adopt zero tolerance towards drug abuse, and that the city police would extend full cooperation to root out the menace.
Meanwhile, KMC Mangaluru has terminated the services of two doctors and suspended five students who were on internship, following their arrest on charges of drug peddling and consumption.