In a significant fallout from a major interstate narcotics operation, the Bengaluru City Police have suspended three of its inspectors for alleged negligence in duty. The action comes days after a coordinated raid led to the seizure of illegal drugs with an estimated value of Rs 1.2 crore from the city.
Suspensions Follow Major Interstate Raid
The suspended officers have been identified as Inspectors Chethan Kumar, Ramakrishna Reddy, and Srinivas. They were in charge of the Kothanur, Avalahalli, and Bagaluru police stations, respectively. The police department took the disciplinary step on Monday, December 30, 2025, holding them accountable for failing to detect and prevent the manufacturing and storage of narcotics within their jurisdictions.
Authorities also accused the inspectors of not gathering adequate intelligence, despite the ongoing 'Mane Manege Police' public outreach initiative designed to foster community cooperation.
Details of the Drug Manufacturing Bust
The suspensions are directly linked to a large-scale operation conducted last week. A joint team comprising the Maharashtra Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF), Mumbai police, Bengaluru City police, and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) carried out raids across several locations in Karnataka, including Bengaluru.
The operation yielded a substantial haul:
- 4.2 kg of mephedrone was seized from a house in Yerappanahalli village, under Avalahalli police limits.
- 17 kg of raw material in liquid form, along with various chemicals, barrels, mixers, and other equipment used in drug production.
- An additional mixer was recovered from N G Gollahalli in the Kothanur area.
- Raw materials stored at a carpenter shed in Kannur were also confiscated.
Police clarified that no functional laboratory or factory was found at the raided sites. Interestingly, while Karnataka's Home Minister G Parameshwara pegged the seizure value at Rs 1.2 crore, the Maharashtra ANTF claimed the confiscated narcotics were worth Rs 55 crore.
Separate Arrests Reveal Ongoing Drug Trade
In a related development on Monday, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) of Bengaluru announced two separate arrests for drug peddling, with narcotics worth Rs 2.5 crore seized.
In the first case, a 45-year-old Nigerian national, Christopher, was arrested. He was allegedly found with 1.70 kg of MDMA crystals, 60 ecstasy pills, and Rs 2 lakh in cash, with the total contraband valued at approximately Rs 2.25 crore. Police stated that Christopher, who was in India on a business visa, sourced the MDMA at lower rates from foreign nationals based in Delhi and Mumbai.
In the second incident, authorities arrested 26-year-old Naveen Raj, a delivery executive for an online commercial company. Hailing from Tamil Nadu, Raj was allegedly caught with 100 LSD strips and 5 grams of cocaine, materials worth around Rs 25 lakh. The police investigation revealed that he purchased drugs at a lower cost and sold them to customers at a higher price.
These incidents collectively underscore the challenges of narcotics enforcement in the city and have led to serious internal accountability measures within the police force.
