Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday attacked Congress over Rs 5640 crore Delhi drug bust “kingpin” Tushar Goyal’s link with the opposition party, saying it is dangerous and shameful. However, Congress has denied any link with Goyal and informed that he was expelled from the party two years ago.Shah also said that everyone has seen the plight of the youth of Punjab, Haryana and the entire north India due to drugs during the Congress rule.
"While on one hand the Modi government is adopting a zero-tolerance policy for a 'drug-free India', the involvement of a prominent Congress leader in the Rs 5,600 crore drug consignment seized from north India is extremely dangerous and shameful," the minister wrote on X in Hindi.He said that while the Modi government is taking the youth towards sports, education and innovation, the "Congress wants to take them into the dark world of drugs".
"Our government is determined to make India a 'drug-free country' by destroying the entire drug network, without looking at the political position or stature of the drug dealers," he added.In one of Delhi's biggest drug busts, police seized over 560 kilograms of cocaine and 40 kilograms of hydroponic marijuana estimated to be worth around Rs 5,620 crore earlier this week.The BJP on Thursday alleged that the kingpin, Tushar Goel, arrested in connection with the seizure of drugs is the chairman of the Delhi Youth Congress' RTI cell, a claim refuted by the opposition party as baseless. The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) said in a statement that Goel was expelled from the organisation on October 17, 2022, for anti-party activities soon after BJP spokesperson and MP Sudhanshu Trivedi charged the opposition party with having links with drug dealers.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, party national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia also rejected the Congress youth wing's claim that Goyal had been expelled on October 17, 2022 for anti-party activities.
In a significant development, Delhi Police have made a fifth arrest in connection with the seizure of over 500 kg of cocaine—the largest haul ever recorded in the national capital, valued at approximately Rs 5,000 crore. The latest suspect, identified as Jitendra Pal Singh, also known as Jassi, was apprehended at Amritsar Airport in Punjab on Thursday as he attempted to flee to the United Kingdom.Jitendra Pal Singh, alias Jassi, 40, had come to India to oversee the drug cartel's operations but was planning to flee after the arrest of four other members, sources said. He has been living in the UK for the last 17 years and has a UK Green Card.
This arrest points to potential links between organised crime in the UK and a widespread drug smuggling network operating across India.The police were alerted to Singh's attempted escape due to an issued Look Out Circular (LOC) against him.
Investigations reveal that this particular drug syndicate operates out of both Delhi and Mumbai, with suspected links to Dubai.
One name that has emerged during police interrogations is Virendra Basoya, an Indian citizen currently residing in Dubai, who authorities believe could be one of the masterminds—if not the kingpin—behind this drug smuggling network. Basoya had previously been arrested in an unrelated case but secured bail. Last year, police in Maharashtra conducted a raid in Delhi, resulting in the seizure of drugs worth Rs 3,000 crore, including 'meow meow,' the street name for the synthetic stimulant mephedrone.
Notably, this raid occurred just a day after Basoya's son married the daughter of a former MLA from Uttar Pradesh’s Noida, during a lavish ceremony at a farmhouse near Delhi's airport. Following the police action, Basoya fled to Dubai and is believed to now head an international cartel.
