'Drugs worth Rs 16,000 crore seized in 4 years in Gujarat but no concrete action': Congress' Lalji Desai

Today, drugs are coming into Gujarat unabated and instead of taking action on that, the state's home minister is conveying through the system that police personnel should protest against the Congress's "Jan Aakrosh Yatra", Desai alleged.

New Delhi: Hitting out at the BJP government in Gujarat, the Congress claimed on Tuesday that drugs worth around Rs 16,000 crore were seized in the state over four years, but no culprit was found in any of these cases and no concrete action taken.

The opposition party's attack came a day after protests were held in different parts of north Gujarat over Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani's alleged threat that police personnel would lose their jobs for not taking action against bootleggers and drug dealers.

Holding banners against Mevani, kin of police personnel took out rallies in Palanpur town of Banaskantha as well as in Patan and Vav-Tharad districts, seeking an apology from the Vadgam legislator. They accused him of habitually targeting and insulting police personnel for publicity.

Gujarat Congress leader and the party's Seva Dal chief, Lalji Desai, said a few days ago, Mevani, along with members of the public, conducted a "public raid" on a "shop selling drugs" right next to a school.

During this, Mevani told the local police personnel and officials that if they allow such a shop selling drugs to operate next to a school, there will be action against them.

"In response to this, Gujarat's home minister said if any educated public representative talks about the law, 'do not worry, I am here'. This statement was made by the home minister (Harsh Sanghavi), who is also the deputy chief minister, even though there is a complete liquor ban in Gujarat," Desai told a press conference here.

Today, drugs are coming into Gujarat unabated and instead of taking action on that, the state's home minister is conveying through the system that police personnel should protest against the Congress's "Jan Aakrosh Yatra", he alleged.

"In Gujarat today, the highest level of corruption is in the home department. Previously, Vijay Rupani, the former chief minister of Gujarat himself, had stated that maximum corruption in Gujarat is in the revenue department, followed by the home ministry," the Congress leader claimed.

"In Gujarat, over the course of four years, drugs worth around Rs 16,000 crore were seized, but no culprits have been found in any of these cases," Desai claimed.

On November 21, Mevani went to the office of the superintendent of police of the newly-formed Vav-Tharad district with some residents of Shivnagar in Thrarad town, alleging rampant sale of liquor and drugs in the area.

The Gujarat Congress working president, in the presence of Vav-Tharad SP Chintan Teraiya, accused police personnel of taking bribes from bootleggers and drug dealers.

Addressing the police inspector and personnel present there, Mevani said they would lose their jobs if they tried to intimidate locals for raising the issue before him.

He also told the locals not to worry because police personnel are just "servants".

Angered by his comments, family members of police personnel took out rallies in Palanpur, Tharad and Patan towns of north Gujarat.