A total of 11 individuals, including inter-State drug traffickers, peddlers, and consumers, were arrested by the Hyderabad police in separate operations.
The officials seized a total of 386 grams of narcotic substances, including cocaine, mephedrone (Meow-Meow/MD), and ecstasy pills, valued collectively at over ₹82 lakh. The seizures included 276 grams of cocaine, 100 grams of MD, 11 ecstasy pills, three mobile phones, and a country-made pistol with six live rounds.
In one of the largest seizures, the Hyderabad Narcotic Enforcement Wing (H-NEW) along with Golconda police busted a Mumbai-Hyderabad cocaine network by arresting four inter-State peddlers, identified as Mujaffar Wahid Shaikh, 30, an electrician, Vinod Kishanlal Shrivasthav, 53, a taxi driver, Chaitanya Vinayak Wagh, 29, an artist, and Mustak Khan, 31, a delivery boy, all based in Mumbai, along with peddler, Prem, 29, a private employee, and two Hyderabad-based consumers. The group was found in possession of 276 grams of high-grade cocaine and eight mobile phones, worth ₹69 lakh. Police said the drugs had been sourced from foreign nationals through sea routes and supplied across States by a chain of individuals.
Mujaffar Wahid Shaikh, a fifth-grade dropout from Chanda Bazaar, Uttar Pradesh, had worked as a welder and electrician in Mumbai before entering drug trade in 2016. He used to source cocaine from foreign suppliers who smuggled it into India via sea routes. Similarly, Vinod Shrivastav, a former taxi driver from Prayagraj, transitioned from couriering drugs on commission to full-fledged peddling after a road accident in 2024. Chaitanya Wagh, an aspiring 3D artist, and Mustak Khan, a former delivery agent, were also drawn into the network, each procuring cocaine at lower rates from Mumbai, and selling it to Hyderabad-based peddler, Prem.
Prem, who already has multiple narcotics cases against him, used his corporate day job as a cover while actively supplying drugs in the city.
In a separate operation, H-NEW and Bollaram police apprehended 28-year-old software employee Harshavardhan alias Harsha, who was caught with 10 grams of cocaine, 11 ecstasy pills, and a mobile phone worth ₹3.1 lakh. A native of Hyderabad, Harshavardhan reportedly slipped into drug use following a love failure, and eventually began sourcing cocaine from Bengaluru and Goa to supply it within the city. Police said he used his income from drug peddling to sustain a lavish lifestyle, frequenting pubs and nightlife hotspots.
In another significant bust, H-NEW in coordination with Begum Bazaar police arrested two inter-State drug transporters, identified as Pawan Bhati, 24, and Hemsingh Kachhawa, 26, both from Rajasthan, and a local peddler, Jeetendara Panwar, 28. Officers seized 100 grams of MD, a country-made pistol, six live rounds, one empty shell, and three mobile phones. The total haul was valued at ₹10 lakh.
Investigations revealed that Jeetendara, a sweet maker by profession, partnered with his contacts from Rajasthan to distribute the synthetic drug in Hyderabad after his sweet shop business failed in a span of six months. He also illegally acquired a firearm, which he test-fired in Kattedan before his arrest.
Meanwhile, Pawan Bhati returned to Hyderabad in May 2025 after working as a driver in his native town following the failure of his shops in Hyderabad. He set up a juice shop in the city during the summer season and later went to Rajasthan to procure MD drug from Surender, a resident of Nagur, Rajasthan, and delivered to Jeetendara Panwar for sale. Hemsingh Kachhawa, an accused in a 2021 POCSO case who was released recently, procured the contraband from Rajasthan and delivered to Jeetendara against a commission.
Cases have been registered under various sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and the Arms Act, and further investigations are under way to trace the supply chains, financial trails, other peddlers and foreign nationals involved in the network.
Published – July 23, 2025 11:13 pm IST
