Inter-state racket busted in Telangana; 170 kg ganja seized, 8 held

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], September 14 (ANI): The Telangana Excise Department, in a joint operation with a team of Special Task Force (STF), seized 170 kg of ganja and arrested eight persons in Hyderabad on Saturday.
According to officials, two vehicles and eight mobile phones were also seized along with 170 kg of ganja from the Pedda Amberpet area of Hyderabad.
Speaking to ANI on Saturday, SY Qureshi, Joint Commissioner of Prohibition and Excise in Telangana, said that among the eight arrested, five belonged to Maharashtra and three were from Odisha's Malkangiri. He said that the ganja was seized from one of the vehicles while being taken from Odisha to Maharastra.
"Ganja was concealed in a separate chamber made for this purpose in the vehicle so nobody could doubt it. It was so perfect," Qureshi said.

The Joint Commissioner added that the main accused, identified as Ismail, "arranged" ganja as per "requests," and this time it was being taken to be sold to suppliers in Maharashtra.
"The Ganja was being transported from Odisha to Maharashtra. Accused Ismail is the main player. He is a resident of Odisha. All the accused persons have been caught at once. Their entire module has been busted," SY Qureshi said.
Qureshi also appreciated the officials who were part of the operation and said that the police had been on the lookout for this gang for a long time.
"And this is a very good operation by the police. We have been watching the moments of this module for a very long time. And the efforts of the team members and the team leaders are important," he said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, he added. (ANI)