Panel orders 1-year detention of drug lord Akshay, 2 others in Dibrugarh jail
A three-member advisory board under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PITNDPS) Act has ordered one-year detention of Ludhiana drug lords Akshay Chhabra, Jaspal Singh, alias Goldy, and Balwinder Singh, alias Billa Havellian, in the Dibrugarh jail of Assam. The order came in connection with the infamous 20,400 kg heroin smuggling racket spanning across Punjab, Mundra port (Gujarat), Jammu and Kashmir and Afghanistan.
The racket was busted by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Chandigarh zone. In August, the three suspects were sent to the Dibrugarh jail under the PITNDPS Act. Their detention was reviewed by the advisory board earlier this week, said an NCB spokesperson. The board comprised Justice Ajit Borthakur, Bikram Choudhary and Padmadhar Nayak. The one-year detention would be considered from August when they were first detained.
They would remain lodged in the Dibrugarh jail as part of efforts to dismantle their extensive drug trafficking network, said the NCB spokesperson.
Kingpin Chhabra was first arrested at the Jaipur International Airport while attempting to flee to Sharjah, UAE, in November 2022. The syndicate was busted with the arrest of 21 persons, including traffickers and two Afghan nationals. He sourced heroin from Afghanistan in cans of tomato sauce or bottles of pomegranate juice imported by Indian traders from Iran, sources said.
The NCB found heroin in 612 cans of tomato sauce imported from Afghanistan, officials added. These had special markings to distinguish these from other cans. The NCB also found heroin in 350 bottles of juice imported from Iran.
While lodged in Punjab jails, Chhabra and Goldy continued their illegal activities, resulting in multiple additional FIRs against them.
Third smuggler Balwinder Singh has extensive ties with Pakistan-based syndicates. He faces multiple NDPS-related charges and has been implicated in serious crimes, including murder bids.
