Now, Nagpur cops to unleash bulldozers on houses of drug lords

Nagpur: City Police Commissioner Ravinder Singal on Friday vowed to unleash bulldozers on illegal properties owned by drug lords as part of the intensified anti-narcotics campaign — Operation Thunder.
This first of its kind plan against drug kingpins follows his earlier actions on March 17, when the house of the alleged Nagpur riots mastermind Fahim Khan was demolished, along with parts of unauthorized constructions linked to another rioter, Yusuf Shaikh. Top 50 members of drug cartels are on the police radar.
While these demolitions were hailed in some quarters, the High Court labeled them as high-handed, prompting police to adopt a more cautious and legally sound approach in future.
Singal has mobilized resources to identify and seize properties, assets, and wealth linked to drug lords involved in interstate narcotics networks. "We will proceed legally to raze illegal constructions and properties of drug lords to shatter their confidence," he said. Singal declared, emphasizing that police are working closely with the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to gather details of benami properties and unauthorized establishments.
He added, "Their bank accounts will be frozen, and all assets will come under scrutiny."
Operation Thunder, launched as a cornerstone of the Drug-Free Nagpur campaign, coincides with International Anti-Narcotics Week, observed from June 20 to 26.
Nagpur Police's aggressive stance extends beyond property demolitions. Singal has taken a firm stand on vehicles used in
drug trafficking
, stating, "Vehicles facilitating the drug trade will remain in our custody as part of legal actions."
The policy aims to disrupt the logistics of drug networks. Also, police have ramped up surveillance on transport systems, including buses and railways, leading to successful busts of Mumbai-based drug syndicates. Sources revealed that while police previously targeted properties of top gangsters in the city, delays from civic authorities hindered swift action. Singal urged citizens to report suspicious activities, assuring confidentiality.
"Citizens are our eyes and ears," he said, crediting tip-offs for Operation Thunder's success. The top cop has also issued a stern warning to associates of drug lords, stating, "Friends, aides, and supporters sheltering these criminals will face strict action."

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Wire

41 minutes ago

• The Wire

Opposition Leaders Criticise Shah's Remark that Speaking English In India Will Soon Evoke Shame

Some leaders pointed to the economic value of learning English, while others recalled India's linguistic diversity. New Delhi: A number of opposition politicians on Friday (June 20) expressed criticism of Union home minister Amit Shah's remarks that soon people would feel shame for speaking in English in India, saying that learning the language is economically useful and alleging that Shah was trying to undermine India's linguistic pluralism. Speaking at a book launch in Delhi, Shah on Thursday said that 'the building of a society where those who speak English in this country will feel shame is not far away now'. A 'foreign language' cannot be used to understand 'our country, its history, its traditions and our religions', said Shah, adding to express hope that despite the difficulty in doing so, Indian society would 'once again' run the country, think, conduct research and make decisions in 'our languages'. However, Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi said English is 'as essential as your mother tongue because it will secure jobs [and] boost confidence', advocating for cherishing Indian languages while teaching English. He also alleged that the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh 'don't want India's poor children to learn English because they don't want you to ask questions, move forward or stand equal'. K. Kanimozhi, Rajya Sabha MP from the Tamil Nadu-based Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party that has resisted what it says is the 'imposition' of Hindi in the state, said that the 'only thing [one] should be ashamed of' is 'imposing your will on the people and trying to destroy the pluralism of India', per a machine translation. R. Bindu, education minister of neighbouring Kerala, alleged that Shah was trying to impose Hindi when he spoke against English. The Hindu cited the Communist Party of India (Marxist) politician as saying that the home minister's remarks reflected his 'narrow politics' and, given that 'learning as many languages as possible would enhance one's knowledge', would 'narrow the global perspective of students'. P. Sandosh Kumar, Rajya Sabha MP for Kerala and member of the Communist Party of India, was quoted as saying by PTI that Shah was trying to 'stigmatise India's linguistic diversity and push the RSS-BJP's cultural majoritarianism'. Trinamool Congress leader Sagarika Ghose, who represents West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha, said Indians 'should not be 'ashamed' of ANY language'. 'Preposterous nonsense from Shri [Amit Shah]. 'English is a link language across India, [it's] aspirational, confers a global advantage and knowledge of English is demanded by millions,' she wrote on X.

NDTV

an hour ago

• NDTV

Two Arrested In Rs 183 Crore Fake Bank Guarantee Scam

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) initiated three distinct cases on May 9, in accordance with directives issued by the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, the agency said in a release on Thursday. According to the release, these cases involve a significant financial fraud involving an Indore-based company that submitted forged bank guarantees totalling Rs. 183.21 crores to the Madhya Pradesh Jol Nigam Limited (MPJNL). In 2023, the company secured three immigration projects in Madhya Pradesh worth a staggering Rs. 974 crores from MPJNL. To support these contracts, eight fake bank guarantees valued at Rs. 183.21 crores were submitted. During initial verification, MPJNL received fraudulent email responses impersonating the official domain of Punjab National Bank (PNB), falsely confirming the authenticity of the bank guarantees. Relying on these confirmations, MPJNL awarded the firm three contracts valued at over Rs. 974 crores in this matter. The CBI launched a large-scale operation on June 19 and June 20, conducting searches at 23 locations across five states: New Delhi, West Bengal, Gujarat, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh. This operation led to the arrest of two individuals from Kolkata, including a senior manager from Punjab National Bank, the CBI said. Both individuals were produced today before the local jurisdictional court in Kolkata and will be brought to Indore on transit remand, it said. The investigation so far has revealed that a Kolkata-based syndicate has been systematically fabricating and circulating fake bank guarantees to secure government contracts across multiple states. Further investigation is still on, it added.

India Gazette

an hour ago

• India Gazette

CBI cracks down on Rs 183 crore fake bank guarantee scam, arrests two

New Delhi [India], June 21 (ANI): The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) initiated three distinct cases on May 9, in accordance with directives issued by the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, the agency said in a release on Thursday. According to the release, these cases involve a significant financial fraud involving an Indore-based company that submitted forged bank guarantees totalling Rs. 183.21 crores to the Madhya Pradesh Jol Nigam Limited ( In 2023, the company secured three immigration projects in Madhya Pradesh worth a staggering Rs. 974 crores from MPJNL. To support these contracts, eight fake bank guarantees valued at Rs. 183.21 crores were submitted. During initial verification, received fraudulent email responses impersonating the official domain of Punjab National Bank (PNB), falsely confirming the authenticity of the bank guarantees. Relying on these confirmations, MP JNL awarded the firm three contracts valued at over Rs. 974 crores in this matter. The CBI launched a large-scale operation on June 19 and June 20, conducting searches at 23 locations across five states: New Delhi, West Bengal, Gujarat, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh. This operation led to the arrest of two individuals from Kolkata, including a senior manager from Punjab National Bank, the CBI said. Both individuals were produced today before the local jurisdictional court in Kolkata and will be brought to Indore on transit remand, it said. The investigation so far has revealed that a Kolkata-based syndicate has been systematically fabricating and circulating fake bank guarantees to secure government contracts across multiple states. Further investigation is still on, it added. (ANI)