Karnataka Govt will take action against whoever’s found guilty in drugs probe: Dr. K. Sudhakar

Karnataka Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar hit out at former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah over claims that the BJP in Karnataka was misusing the probe into the drug bust in the state. 

Speaking to media persons after attending a Teachers’ Day celebration at Chikkaballapura, Sudhakar said, “To protect the youth from drug abuse, strict regulations must be introduced in the state. The society will be affected if the youth are not protected and led in the right direction,” Sudhakar said. 

He said that successive governments have not done enough to counter drug peddling. He stated that the government will take action no matter how powerful they are. “BJP government will take actions against whoever is found guilty in the drug probe despite their financial status, community or religion,” he said. 

Siddaramaiah had said that the BJP government in Karnataka was diverting attention from the COVID-19 crisis through the drug bust and accused the BJP of protecting its own leaders. 

Sudhakar’s statements come at a time when a series of drug busts have taken place in Karnataka. Those accused of being part of a drug ring include Sandalwood actors Sanjjana Galrani, Ragini Dwivedi and party planner Viren Khanna. 

Ragini Dwivedi had campaigned for the BJP in the 2019 bye-elections but the party has disassociated itself from the actor ever since her name figured in the drug bust case.

The Central Crime Branch, probing the drug menace among the bigwigs of Karnataka including film actors, arrested one more person in connection with the case, police said on Saturday.

With this, the number of those arrested so far in the drug abuse case went up to 10. “Vaibhav Jain, accused in the drug case, has been arrested,” the CCB said in a statement.

CCB have launched a crackdown against the drug menace after the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested three people, including a woman, who were allegedly supplying drugs to the Kannada film actors and singers.

The police have registered cases against 14 people. Besides the CCB, the Enforcement Directorate has also started probing into the financial aspect of the case.

Source: NM