Cracking the whip on drug trafficking, the Punjab government Tuesday decided to invoke a stringent law allows detention of suspected narcotics smugglers up to a year without trial and attachment of properties of proclaimed offenders in NDPS cases.
The decision to invoke the stringent provisions of the Prevention of Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988 was announced by Director General of Police Mohammad Mustafa of the Punjab police's Special Task Force on Drugs.
The DGP said the STF has already identified 62 persons for preventive detention and 137 proclaimed offenders under the NDPS Act for attachment of their properties under the law.
The STF (Drugs) was created within the Punjab police by the Amarinder Singh government in March 2017 to fight the drug menace in the state.
Since its creation, the STF has arrested over 25,000 people allegedly involved in drug smuggling, peddling or abuse of drugs, besides seizing 509 kg of heroin, about 1,400 kg of opium, smack and charas and 71,922 kg of poppy husk.
The STF chief said he has also activated anti-narcotic cells in all districts for enhanced coordination with the district police to effectively deal with the drug malady.
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We have identified 62 such drug traffickers who deserve preventive detention and the process is on in this regard," said the DGP, adding there is no provision of bail in preventive detention cases.
Whether any case has been registered or not, we can detain a person without trial if he has been supplying drugs or is supporting drug trade directly or indirectly. There is no need to register a case, he said, asserting that it will have deterrent effect on drug trade.
He said drug traffickers can be detained for a year and the detention period can be extended.
Punjab is using this law for the first time. We are the biggest sufferer (of the drug problem), said the DGP.
The state home secretary will be the competent authority for ordering detention, he added.
Ruling out the possibility of misuse of the stringent law, the STF chief said it stipulates ratification of the detention order by a three-member advisory board comprising retired high court judges within 90 days.
After one is detained, his detention has to be ratified by the board within 90 days. If the board is not satisfied with the detention, the detenue has to be released," he said.
The STF has also decided to attach properties of 137 proclaimed offenders, booked after recoveries of commercial quantities of drugs (more than 250 gms of heroin or equivalent), the DGP said.
The directions have already been issued for initiating actions for attachments of the properties of these offenders, he added.
The STF chief said the police would register fresh cases against absconders who evaded police summonses under section 174 of the IPC for questioning their roles in drug smuggling.
Evading police summons under section 174 of the IPC entails three-year jail term.
The STF has also identified 328 absconders and 97 parole jumpers against whom fresh legal actions would be initiated for their arrest, said the DGP.
The Special Task Force on Drugs has also identified 725 accused who got bail by default due to non-filing of chargesheets in courts within the stipulated period.
Any movement of accused booked in drug cases from the jail will also be shared with the STF within 24 hours, he said.
Mohd Mustafa, who took over as STF chief in September, wondered why such actions were not taken earlier when the provisions already existed under the law.
The STF was headed earlier by Additional Director General of Police Harpreet Singh Sidhu.
DGP Mustafa said he has also initiated steps for better coordination between the STF and Punjab police to effectively deal with the drug menace.
We have activated anti-narcotic cells throughout the state and we will be monitoring them. Earlier, anti-narcotic cells did not exist in 13 districts, he said.
There was a lack of coordination between Punjab police and STF and there was no synergy, the DGP said.
He also said there was no need for additional force for the STF which was the earlier demand of the task force on drugs. I have brought the presence of STF at range level by deputing assistant inspector generals, he said.
DGP Mustafa said that he had urged the health authorities to set up a separate drug division in their department as part of the state's efforts to deal the drug problem.
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