The Delhi Police Crime Branch has arrested a wanted mother-son duo linked to an organised drug syndicate and facing cases under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, officials said on Thursday.

The accused have been identified as Neelam Rana, 47, wife of Rajesh Rana alias Bunty, and her son Rahul Rana, 27. Both were wanted in FIR No. 74/2026, registered under Sections 3 and 4 of MCOCA at Tilak Nagar police station, and FIR No. 968/2021, registered under Sections 21 and 29 of the NDPS Act at Khyala police station.

Proceedings under Section 84 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) had been initiated against both accused by the concerned courts. Rajesh Rana, who is the head of the syndicate, has already been charge-sheeted in the MCOCA case and is currently in judicial custody.

According to police, a team from the Western Range-II unit of the Crime Branch was constituted on the directions of DCP Harsh Indora following specific intelligence received by Head Constable Pramod Kumar. The team was led by Inspector Satish Malik under the supervision of ACP Raj Pal Dabas.

The team included Sub-Inspectors Anuj Chhikara and Pradeep Dahiya, Assistant Sub-Inspector Shreeom, and Head Constables Ravinder Singh, Pramod Kumar and Azad.

SI Anuj Chhikara and HC Ravinder Singh conducted technical surveillance to trace the accused. Following sustained efforts, the team located them at their residential premises in Bindapur and Mahavir Enclave, Delhi, on October 27.

After the court proceedings and completing the necessary legal formalities, both were arrested under Section 35(1)(c) of the BNSS.

Police said Neelam Rana had been involved in 13 criminal cases since 1995, including cases under the Excise Act and the NDPS Act. Non-bailable warrants were also pending against her in two NDPS cases. Rahul Rana is also an accused in an NDPS case and a separate case registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to investigators, Neelam Rana began selling liquor illegally in the Khyala and Tilak Nagar areas with her husband and his family. She later allegedly became involved in procuring and selling heroin, also known as smack. Her son Rahul Rana allegedly joined the illegal drug trade.

The police further alleged that the family operated an organised syndicate led by Rajesh Rana, generating substantial proceeds from drug trafficking. Following his arrest, Neelam and Rahul went into hiding and frequently changed locations to evade arrest.

The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe and registration of an FIR against former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and senior police officials over alleged interference in search operations at the office of political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) in Kolkata.

A Bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and N.V. Anjaria reserved its order on the limited question of whether the matter should be referred to the CBI or left to the newly elected West Bengal government to decide on the investigation.

During the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Banerjee, argued that with a change in the government in West Bengal, there was no longer any impediment to a state-level decision on transferring the investigation to the CBI.

He questioned the need for a judicial direction, submitting that the state government was competent to refer the matter to the Central agency on its own.

The Justice Mishra-led Bench also questioned why the West Bengal government could not refer the matter to the CBI in the changed circumstances, observing that the situation prevailing at the time the ED approached the top court might no longer exist.

However, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju, appearing for the ED, opposed leaving the matter to the state government, arguing that such a course could invite allegations of mala fide action.

ASG Raju submitted that the matter involved allegations against not only the former Chief Minister but also senior police officers, making it necessary to ensure an independent and fair investigation.

He further argued that since cross-cases were involved, the investigation should be entrusted to a single agency to ensure that both sides of the dispute were examined together.

The Centre’s law officer maintained that an independent investigation was necessary to address concerns about the fairness of the probe and prevent allegations of collusion between the ED and the state government.

The Justice Mishra-led Bench observed that Sibal’s argument was that the state government could itself transfer the case to the CBI, without requiring an order from the Supreme Court.

Responding to the submissions, Raju said the ED had approached the apex court seeking an independent investigation and that leaving the decision to the state government could give rise to further controversy over the manner in which the case was handled.

The arguments concluded with the Supreme Court reserving its order on the limited issue.

The matter arises from search operations conducted by the ED on January 8 at the I-PAC office and the residence of its co-founder, Pratik Jain, in connection with a money laundering probe linked to an alleged coal smuggling scam.

The federal anti-money laundering agency has claimed that Banerjee, accompanied by police personnel and senior officials, entered the premises while the searches were underway and interfered with the investigation.

The ED has sought registration of FIRs against Banerjee, the then West Bengal Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar and the then Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Kumar Verma, among others, besides seeking transfer of the probe to the CBI.

Banerjee has denied the allegations, maintaining that she visited the premises to retrieve confidential and proprietary data belonging to the Trinamool Congress, which she claimed was linked to the party’s electoral strategy.

On January 15, the Supreme Court stayed FIRs registered by the West Bengal Police against ED officials in connection with the searches and directed the preservation of CCTV footage and other digital records relating to the premises.

Earlier, the apex court had orally observed that alleged interference by a sitting Chief Minister in an ongoing investigation could put democracy “in peril”.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay will chair a Cabinet meeting at the Secretariat in Chennai on Thursday to review key government programmes, consider proposals for new industrial ventures and discuss administrative decisions.

The meeting, the third since the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government assumed office following its victory in the Assembly election, is expected to assess progress on initiatives launched by the administration and examine measures needed to advance their implementation.

Among the principal matters likely to come up are approvals for new industrial projects and a review of the functioning of government departments. Discussions are expected to cover the status of ongoing programmes and administrative issues requiring decisions at the Cabinet level.

The government’s long-term development initiative, “Vetri Tamil Nadu”, is also expected to feature prominently. The administration has announced the programme as part of its development agenda and has begun taking steps towards its implementation.

According to indications ahead of the meeting, ministers will discuss activities undertaken under the initiative, the present status of projects and the objectives set for their execution.

The deliberations are expected to provide an opportunity to review how the programme is progressing across the departments concerned.

The Cabinet may also discuss opposition from fishing communities to the proposal to establish the government’s administrative headquarters at Pattinapakkam, sources said. Fishermen have raised objections to the proposed location, bringing the issue into focus ahead of Thursday’s deliberations. However, there was no confirmation in the information available ahead of the meeting that the headquarters proposal would be formally included in the agenda or that a decision on it would be taken.

The meeting comes as the Vijay administration moves forward with various schemes announced after taking office.

Reviewing departmental performance alongside major development proposals is expected to be a central part of the discussions.

For the industrial proposals, attention will be on whether the Cabinet grants approvals and what details the government subsequently releases about the ventures.

On “Vetri Tamil Nadu”, the meeting is expected to examine the relationship between the programme’s stated targets and the progress of individual projects.

Any decisions on industrial investments, programme implementation or the proposed administrative headquarters will become clear following the meeting.