16 nabbed in Bathinda village during early-morning swoop

The early-morning swoop in the villages, suspected to be the hubs of the supply of drugs, seems to be the strategy of the police in the crackdown against the menace in the state.

Following the strategy, the police raided the Daulewala village in Moga district in the wee hours on Saturday, and on the same pattern, raids were conducted in Bir Talab village here on Sunday.

Early hours, as per police sources, are considered best time as there is more likelihood of finding suspects in their houses during this time.

As many as 16 drug peddlers were arrested from the village whereas 1,000 litre lahan (homemade liquor), 7-gm smack, 200gm intoxicant powder and four stolen motorcycles were recovered during the raid.

A 200-strong police force, led by 10 SHOs, started the search operation in the village at 4 am with the policemen knocking at the doors of houses of suspects.

The village is considered the main link in the supply of drugs in and around the city.

Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that raids are being conducted on the basis of infor mation gathered by the ploce and there is no set pattern for the raids.

VILLAGE WOMEN WANT REGULAR WATCH
The government may have its own compulsion to intensify the raids on drug suppliers in view of the poor performance of the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janta Party (SAD-BJP) alliance in the recently held parliamentary elections in the state, but women of drug-affected Bir Talab village feel that nabbing the big fish and regular watch and inspection were required to get rid of this menace and keep the main drug suppliers away from the village.

Bir pal, mother of Ranjeet Singh, who was arrested by the police in the raid, said: “I know my son is habitual of taking smack.

To fulfill the monetary requirement for this, he also indulges in theft. But, nabbing him only was not the solution as he was only an addict and the real culprits are the main suppliers.”

Prem Lata, another resident, whose husband Jangir and son Krishan were arrested in the crackdown, said: “The village has been ruined by the drugs.

Many of the village youth have been found involved in theft incidents and are in jails. They commit thefts for money to buy drugs. Illicit liquor is the other problem in the village.”

A resident alleged that main suppliers of drugs in the village such as Sanjeev, Sonu, Bhagu and Monu are absconding. However, they have been booked and search is on for them.

He said that main suppliers visit the village only during the night.