J&K: 5 held for peddling drugs, another for cultivating opium

Five alleged drug peddlers were arrested along with a man who was illegally cultivating opium on his farm in separate operations in Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

The opium was being grown in an agricultural field in Thandapani-Panjgrian village of Manjakote in Rajouri district, a police spokesperson said.

The opium field was destroyed and the land owner, Ghulam Qadir, was arrested and booked under relevant sections of the law, he added.

In a separate operation, an inter-state drug peddler, Toni Kumar, was arrested after 100 grams of heroin was seized from his possession during checking in Banihal area of Ramban district, the officer said.

Kumar, a resident of Jammu, was riding a two-wheeler when he was stopped by police. He had bought the consignment from Sangam vijllage in south Kashmir's Anantnag district, the officer added.

In the third incident, two alleged drug peddlers, Ujwal Sharma and Vikram Kumar, were arrested after seven grams of heroin was recovered from their possession at Jakhani in Udhampur district.

Another drug peddler, Kameshwar Singh, was arrested along with five kg of poppy straw from the same place, the officer said.

While Jagdish Kumar, a resident of Jandi village in Hiranagar, was arrested on the Link Road near Jandi Fort in Kathua district.

All the five drug peddlers were booked under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and are presently being questioned, the officer said.