Cops asked to destroy cannabis crops, says Basavaraj Bommai

Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday directed the police to destroy cannabis (ganja) crops being grown in different parts of the state as he announced steps to up the ante in the government’s fight against drugs and narcotics.

“Ganja is being grown in some parts of the state and we’ve identified them. Police superintendents in districts and inspector-generals have been directed to destroy the crops,” Bommai told reporters after meeting senior officials on the drug menace.

“Normally, ganja grows inside forests and in inaccessible hilly regions and kharab lands. It’s one thing to seize them when they come packed, but we want to destroy them wherever they’re grown,” he said.

Weed, commonly known as ganja, also comes into the state from Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Bommai said, adding that steps have been taken to tighten regulation at the borders.

“From January to July this year, we have booked 1,438 cases and arrested 1,792 persons including 25 foreign nationals. This is in Bengaluru alone,” Bommai said.

To ensure better coordination, the minister said a committee has been formed comprising the Bengaluru police commissioner, Bengaluru Rural inspector-general and officers from the CID to tackle the drug menace in and around the state capital.

“We have also decided to crack down on foreign nationals involved in the peddling of drugs. Some of them are overstaying their visas and they will be deported,” Bommai said.

Asked about the ongoing investigation into a drug racket allegedly involving celebrities, Bommai said the government is ready to cooperate with the Narcotics Control Bureau. “There’s no question of hushing up anything,” he said. “Regardless of who is involved from any field, we want to take strict action against drugs.”