Mumbai: The Mumbai Airport Customs officers on Sunday arrested a 26-year-old man for allegedly smuggling drugs worth around Rs 9 crore sourced from abroad. Interestingly, the accused had created a cavity in his trolley bag and had cleverly concealed drugs in it to avoid getting caught.

The arrested person has been identified as Ramiz Khan, a resident of Chennai.

According to the Customs sources, on the basis of specific intelligence, passenger Ramiz Khan was intercepted after he arrived at the international airport in Mumbai from Bangkok on Saturday. Thereafter, the Customs officers carried out a search of the trolley bag carried by the passenger. The said trolley bag was stuffed with clothes, chocolates and eight food packets. The said food packets contained eight airtight plastic packets inside.

“Further after emptying the trolley bag, it was found unusually heavy. Therefore, the said empty trolley bag was scanned through a baggage scanning machine which indicated the presence of four more airtight plastic packets. Hence the trolley bag was broken and four more packets were recovered which were cleverly concealed in a cavity created in the bag,” said a Customs source.

The said plastic packets contained green-colored dry leafy substance in lump form which tested positive for hydroponic weed, a substance covered under the NDPS Act. A total of 8895 grams of hydroponic weed valued around Rs 9 crore was recovered from the said passenger after which his statement was recorded wherein he admitted non-declaration, concealment, recovery and seizure of the narcotics substance that is fruiting and flowering top of a plant purported to be hydroponic weed.

“As the investigations in the case are at a very preliminary stage, efforts are also being made to identify and apprehend key associates of the accused. The officers are also probing who had supplied drugs to the accused and who were supposed to receive the said consignments in Mumbai,” said a Customs source.

Patna, Nov 22: After becoming Bihar’s Home Minister, Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has taken a tough stance on maintaining law and order in the state.

On Saturday, soon after assuming office, he issued a stern warning to criminals, declaring that no offender would be spared and that the police had been given full freedom to act.

Deputy CM Choudhary said that the police are no longer bound and now have complete authority to take action openly.

He reaffirmed that criminals have no place in Bihar and asserted that the Home Ministry will work under the guidance of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Good governance, he said, existed earlier and would continue even more firmly in the future.

He added that the ‘jungle raj’ that had been eliminated would not be allowed to return.

Responding to a query about his earlier controversial remark — saying that criminals in Bihar would be cremated in Gaya — the State Home Minister said the police were doing their job.

This marks the first time Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has handed over the Home Department to the BJP since 2005.

In the new Cabinet, along with Nitish Kumar, 26 Ministers were sworn-in.

Samrat Choudhary has been appointed both the Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister, while Vijay Kumar Sinha has also been appointed the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar.

He is holding the charge of Revenue, Land Reforms and Mining departments in the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government.

Ministers from all NDA constituents have found a place in the Bihar Cabinet.

The BJP has the highest representation in the state Cabinet with 14 Ministers, followed by Janata Dal-United with eight, Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas with two, Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) with one, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) with one.

Despite having two Deputy CMs and 14 Ministers, the BJP’s share of the allocated departmental budget is lower compared to JD-U.

The BJP controls 29.22 per cent of the total budget, LJP-RV Ministers 0.91 per cent, HAM 0.58 per cent, and RLM 3.56 per cent.

The remaining departments, accounting for around 65 per cent of the total budget, remain with the JD-U.

Palghar, Maharashtra, Nov 22: The Crime Detection Unit (Unit 2) of the Mira-Bhayander, Vasai-Virar Police has arrested three men involved in an attempted murder and armed robbery at a residence in Vasai, recovering gold jewellery and cash worth ₹10 lakh.

The incident took place on November 18 when three unidentified men forcibly entered the home of 37-year-old Geeta Raut in Reliable Glory Building at Sativali, Vasai West.

The intruders threatened Raut and her son Santosh at knifepoint, demanding information about the location of their gold. When Raut said she did not know, one of the assailants attempted to stab her.

She managed to evade the blow but sustained an injury to her left arm. The attackers then broke open a cupboard and escaped with 12 tolas of gold ornaments and a mobile phone.

Following the registration of the case at Waliv Police Station, officials conducted a detailed investigation at the crime scene and surrounding areas.

Through technical analysis and intelligence from informers, the police identified the suspects and learned that they were residing in Nandagaon, Karnataka.

A team was immediately dispatched, and on November 20, three accused were detained along with 8 tolas of stolen gold, cash, and a mobile phone, collectively valued at ₹10 lakh. During interrogation, it was revealed that they were part of a six-member gang involved in the crime.

The arrested accused have been identified as Ashok alias Babu Raju Shinde, a resident of Shantinagar Dongripada in Vasai East originally from Nandagaon in Karnataka; Abdul Rauf Hashmi, a resident of Richard Compound in Manocha Pada, Vasai East originally from Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh; and Ritik Ravi Belangi, also living in Richard Compound and originally from Nandagaon in Karnataka.

Police have also named three absconding accomplices: Nur Hasan Khan from Patil Wadi in Nalasopara East, Suraj Kishor Jadhav from Shantinagar in Nalasopara East, and Kalu Prabhakar Sahu from Kendrapara in Odisha.

The detained suspects have been handed over to Waliv Police for further action under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Further investigation is underway.