Rajasthan: ANTF seizes drugs, arrests wanted smugglers on Raksha Bandhan

Jaipur, Aug 28 (IANS) The Rajasthan Police’s Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) executed three major operations on Raksha Bandhan, seizing 5.4 kg of MD valued at Rs 1.62 crore and arresting two wanted criminals, including a suspected narcotics kingpin carrying a Rs 1 lakh reward.

Inspector General of Police (ANTF) Vikas Kumar said the operations in Nagaur, Jaipur and Jodhpur were carried out under the guidance of Director General of Police Rajiv Kumar Sharma and Additional Director General of Police Dinesh MN. He noted that ANTF personnel remained on duty during the festival and achieved significant results.

In Nagaur, ANTF personnel intercepted a TUV-300 car near Devnarayan Bagichi in Dugauli village under Jayal police station. A search led to the recovery of 5.4 kg of MD packed in five green packets hidden beneath the front passenger seat. The contraband, worth Rs 1.62 crore in the international market, was allegedly being transported to Jaipur by a juvenile. Police also recovered a mobile phone showing transactions worth Rs 16 lakh. The ANTF is investigating the supplier and distribution network. Kumar said the force has seized 196.76 kg of MD in ten months since its formation.

In Jaipur, the ANTF arrested Sandeep Raj Sharma, a wanted criminal carrying a Rs 25,000 reward. Sharma had been absconding for nearly a year after allegedly firing at police during a June 2025 raid in Nandan Vihar Colony. Eleven criminal cases are registered against him. Police said he frequently changed locations across Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jaipur and Dausa. Acting on intelligence, ANTF arrested him while he was reportedly planning to meet other smugglers wanted in NDPS cases.

In Jodhpur, the ANTF arrested Shyam Sundar, alias Sanwararam or Sanwariya, a suspected narcotics kingpin carrying a Rs 1 lakh reward, under Operation Vanshidhar 2.0. Police said Sundar has been involved in smuggling for nearly 15 years, with 15 criminal cases registered against him, including NDPS, assault, theft and attempted murder. Investigators allege he organised consignments of 30–60 kg of narcotics from Manipur and Mizoram to Rajasthan via Madhya Pradesh using second-hand vehicles. He had evaded arrest on three occasions before being tracked for nearly 10 months and finally arrested in Jodhpur.

The ANTF described Sundar’s arrest as a breakthrough in dismantling interstate narcotics networks. Further investigation is underway to identify suppliers, transporters, financiers and associates linked to the smuggling operations.

–IANS

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