After 13 years, two get 10 years in jail for possessing 17kg ganja

Thirteen years after two men were found in possession of 17kg of ganja, the special court for Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, earlier this week, found them guilty and sentenced them to 10 years in jail.

- Charul Shah Joshi

The two accused – Indrakumar Mallya Surram, 40, and Kartik Ramalingam Naik, 34 – were arrested on August 17, 2010, while trying to sell the contraband at a bus stop in Mhada Colony, Kandivali East. The prosecution had claimed that they were arrested after the officers of the Anti-Narcotics Cell set up a trap based on credible information.

During search, the police recovered 10kg ganja from Surram and 7kg from Naik. They also seized Rs410 and Rs230 in cash, suspected to be proceeds from the sale of narcotics. The prosecution further contended that the contraband was sourced from a third accused, identified only as Chander, who remains at large.