Sandalwood drug case: Cops snare actors, but who is backstage?

The arclights are back in the Kannada film industry, but the glare is on all the wrong places: Sandalwood’s problems with drugs have made headlines and sent two actors to jail and shivers down the spines of many more tinsel-town types and socialites.

But there is a growing realisation that the focus on celebrities is masking a harsher reality: Bengaluru is emerging as a hub for drugs in the south.

Also Read | Actors say women are easy targets

Indeed, the arrests point to a large state-wide network and the complicity of the police and politicians. Karnataka has recorded a more than fivefold increase in narcotics cases in less than five years - from 348 cases in 2015 to 1,899 so far in 2020 under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985 (NDPS). About 60% of cases have been reported from Bengaluru City alone followed by Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. Sandalwood first: Industry insiders say it is the lifestyle of actors, their connections and crucially, the murky world of film financing that makes them part of the cartel. Remarkably, there is a code of silence in the film industry.

As one who has seen the industry from close quarters, film director Rajendra Singh Babu feels influential people are getting away as those investigating the case are hesitant to bring them under the scanner. “Nobody dares point fingers at them,” he says.

A H Vishwanath, a ruling party MLC, and former minister, is openly critical of the way the police are handling the investigations.

“Do you think the police department doesn’t know who is involved in the drug racket and their whereabouts? Why are only select names coming out?” he said in a telephonic interview with DH.

He traced the problem to flaws in general administration, and postings did to favor MLAs, ministers, and influential leaders in the party in power at that point.

A veteran actor who has appeared in big banner films says young actors and children of rich, older actors are quick to connect with politicians’ children.“It is money and fame that brings them together. They don’t know what to do with the surplus money on their hands, and they seek ways to spend it — partying and drugs,” he told DH.

Actor Prakash Rai (aka Prakash Raj) says it is important for people within the industry to speak out against drugs. “People who do drugs are doing wrong, but those watching them and not doing anything about it are committing a bigger crime.”

While the issue has gained traction with the alleged involvement of high-profile individuals, enforcing agencies and policymakers indicate that Bengaluru is fast emerging as the drug capital of South India considering the extent of the drug trade and rising incidents of substance abuse.

Drug capital of the south

The police claim to have clamped down on the peddlers’ network encompassing both locals and foreign nationals, but the absence of efficient investigators and prosecutors and repeated political intervention have led to fewer convictions. A senior IPS officers of ADGP rank told DH that Karnataka has less than 8-10 per cent conviction under the NDPS Act.

“The drug mafia has more or less remained the same over the past few decades, but their reach has expanded. Our focus has also increased on these cartels and the rise in the number of cases is testimony to our actions. Frequent sensitisation and awareness have led to the arrest of more peddlers,” the officer said.

Three years ago, a crackdown on drugs and multiple arrests had prompted several leaders from Karnataka, both at the state and national level, to draw the attention of the state government. The then home minister G Parameshwara had made a shocking revelation that Bengaluru was importing raw materials and had begun to manufacture several types of drugs locally.

“State Intelligence department has obtained inputs that peddlers are manufacturing synthetic drugs at houses located around the Kempegowda International Airport,” Parameshwara had said on the floor of the House. He also said that the youth were purchasing drugs on the dark web and were getting it couriered from as far as Belgium, Denmark and other African countries, an operation which was successfully busted by the Customs officials.

However, allaying the worst fears, the home minister had said, “The government will not allow Bengaluru to go the Punjab way.”

Now, against the backdrop of the unfolding drug scandal, Suresh Kumar, Primary and Secondary Education minister has aired his own unsubstantiated views about the issue, “I have heard about peddlers distributing free ice-creams, chocolates and other eatables to kids around educational institutes and thus making kids addicted to the substance.”

Kumar's suspicions were echoed by MLC Lahar Singh Siroya, who has used the possibility of kids being lured with drugs to speak up about the issue. "On several occasions in the past, despite listing the subject on the proceedings, the issue was not taken up for debate in the House,” he said.

The sustained pressure, both from within the party and outside, has prompted the state government to bring into effect the recommendations of a committee formed to study the issue of drug trafficking in the state. Former MLA N Yogish Bhat, who had headed the Legislative Committee on Petitions, had argued for stringent punishment for amending the NDPS Act to “take action against even those who possess 10 grams of drugs”. Under the NDPS Act, the possession of small quantities of drugs carries a lighter sentence. For substances like marijuana, the limit is 1 kg while for drugs like cocaine and heroin, the limit is 2 gms and 5 gms respectively.

Women, children targeted

The other worrying aspect has been the increased evidence of drug use among college students, children and women, especially between the age of 18 to 40 years.

Recent findings by the Centre for Addiction Medicine at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS) has shown a drastic upsurge of substance abuse among women in Karnataka.

Every year, the centre sees an average of over 100 cases. “While the elders are hooked to tobacco and alcohol, the younger generation is addicted to opioids like heroin, injections, marijuana and tablets,” the report said.

Several leaders have also indicated how the peddlers are using people-friendly initiatives like an extension of nightlife and party culture to push their business across the city. Former CM, HD Kumaraswamy, recently commented, “The business of drugs happens in dance bars, night clubs that go on to operate till 3 am. These are the root causes of drug mafia.”

Kamal Pant, the commissioner of Police, in an interview with DH last week said, “Our fight against these drug cartels is not new and we have been at it. We have been fishing out peddlers both locally as well as at the state level and trying to put an end. Yet, there have been cases here and there and we will give our best to prevent drugs in Bengaluru.”

(With inputs from Mrityunjay Bose in Mumbai and Shemin Joy in New Delhi)