5 months ago
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On the greeting of August 28, a autobus heading to Pratapgarh successful Rajasthan was stopped soon aft it began its travel from Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur district. A radical of policemen successful mufti entered the conveyance and deboarded an 18-year-old boy. Sohanlal Mirasi, a nonmigratory of Sarnon Ki Dhani colony successful Rajasthan’s Balotra district, was detained and aboriginal booked for illegally possessing 2.71 kilograms of opium.
He was charged nether Sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. The lawsuit was recorded connected the CCTV camera fitted connected the bus. Sohanlal’s household approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court successful Indore for his bail, equipped with the 23-second footage, claiming that Sohanlal was empty-handed.
On December 5, the High Court granted Sohanlal bail aft his lawyer presented the footage. Justice Subodh Abhyankar remarked that the lawsuit filed astatine Mandsaur’s Malhargarh constabulary presumption is “rather suspicious”. He summoned Mandsaur Superintendent of Police (SP) Vinod Kumar Meena to look successful the adjacent hearing.
On December 6, Meena suspended six constabulary personnel, including the Malhargarh Station House Officer (SHO) Rajendra Panwar, 2 Sub-Inspectors and 3 constables, owed to “procedural lapses”, portion detaining and arresting Sohanlal. The lawsuit prompted the High Court to remark that the State constabulary had “conveniently forgotten” the provisions of Sections 105 and 185 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which laic retired the procedures for hunt and seizure and audio-video signaling of the process. It has present summoned the Principal Secretary of the State’s Home Department connected January 12 “to apprise this Court astir the steps taken to instrumentality the aforesaid provisions”.
While the M.P. constabulary has faced backlash aft the High Court’s stance, the lawsuit has brought into absorption the opium cultivating regions of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, and the challenges the radical engaged successful the generations-old livelihood are present facing.
One situation is the amerciable commercialized of opium and crushed poppy straw, locally known arsenic doda chura. Farmers and different locals accidental that they unrecorded nether the changeless fearfulness of getting booked connected charges of amerciable possession oregon being named arsenic portion of a smuggling chain. They allege that radical are besides caught connected fake charges and wealth extorted from them adjacent if they are innocent.
Sohanlal’s older brother, Khartaram Jaat, besides alleges that his member was “held successful amerciable custody, beaten and tortured” for astir 5 hours aft helium was detained, and “₹12 lakh was demanded from him”. He says Sohanlal had finished schoolhouse a fewer months earlier and wanted to commencement preparations for the civilian services. “He had gone to Mandsaur to sojourn the Pashupati Nath Temple,” helium says, adding that his member has been “depressed” since the bail and hardly talks to anyone.
Madhya Pradesh’s Malwa portion — Mandsaur, Neemuch, and Ratlam — is nether scrutiny of 4 enforcement agencies: the opium regulatory assemblage the Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN), the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), the M.P. police, and the Narcotics Wing. The CBN had lodged 114 cases nether the NDPS Act successful 2023. This accrued to 145 successful 2025 (until December 18). The different agencies person registered abstracted cases nether the aforesaid Act.
Opium-growing lands
The Malwa portion successful M.P., and Pratapgarh, Chittorgarh, and parts of Kota and Jhalawar districts successful Rajasthan’s Mewar region, are known arsenic the opium loop of India.
The portion produces astir 85% of India’s legally-grown opium with licences issued by the CBN that functions nether the Department of Revenue (DoR) of the Union Ministry of Finance. Some parts of Uttar Pradesh besides turn opium.
Opium, locally called afeem, is tied to household contented and prestige. There’s a section saying: “Afeem ka patta ladke se badhkar hai,” (an opium licence is bigger than a son). Farmers, immoderate of who person inherited the increasing and commercialized from implicit 200 years ago, accidental the licence betters matrimony prospects. Across villages successful the area, onshore parcels are protected with fencing and sarees, and nets screen the plots from the top, truthful parrots bash not get astatine the poppy seed. Cultivation begins aft Deepavali and ends successful March, adjacent to Holi.
The CBN issues licences and procures opium, and is besides engaged successful enforcement of licit production. Licences are of 2 types: opium gum (latex) and the ore of poppy straw (CPS). With the gum licence, farmers extract the opium latex by lancing poppy effect capsules, and merchantability it to the government. This is the accepted signifier successful India. In a CPS licence, the CBN procures the capsule connected the poppy straw of astir 8 inches, including the stem and leaves. This was introduced by the Union Government successful 2020-21.
As per the information obtained from the CBN, 1,15,416 licences were issued to farmers successful the 3 States successful 2025. Of this, 75,333 were for gum and 40,083 were CPS ones. In Madhya Pradesh alone, 56,349 licences — 38,801 gum and 17,548 CPS — were issued this year.
After procurement, the products are sent to the Government Opium and Alkaloid Works, Neemuch, a works for processing opium and manufacture of alkaloids.
Illicit networks and extortion
In Bajhkhedi colony of Mandsaur’s Sitamau, Krishna Pal Singh Rathore, a 36-year-old farmer, allegedly killed himself successful February 5, 2024, months aft helium was booked by the CBN successful September, 2023, for alleged amerciable possession of 11kg of poppy straw. His household says that successful addition, astir 2.4 quintal doda chura was recovered astatine his elder brother, Narendra Singh Rathore’s house. Neither had the required licences.
“Narendra was suffering from crab astatine the time. The officers threatened Krishna Pal that the full quantity would beryllium shown successful the FIR lodged against him. This frightened him. They demanded wealth and a woody was struck for ₹22 lakh. After helium paid the money, helium was assured that the lawsuit would beryllium implicit successful a fewer months,” a household subordinate says connected the information of anonymity. “But the serviceman helium had paid got transferred soon and the caller idiosyncratic past demanded much money,” helium says. After locals and members of the Rajput corporate Karni Sena staged protests, astir ₹15 lakh was returned aft his death, helium adds.
In Ayodhya Basti of Mandsaur’s Piplia Mandi, Bhavna Kunwar, 48, runs a tiny kirana (daily needs) store adjacent to her tin-roof house. Her husband, Govardhan Singh Songara, 51, was arrested connected November 19, 2025, by the CBN for allegedly being portion of a smuggling concatenation of doda chura.
Bhavna Kunwar’s husband, Govardhan Singh Songara, was arrested successful an NDPS lawsuit this year. She runs a kirana store successful Piplia Mandi successful Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur district. | Photo Credit: A.M. Faruqui
Songara, who works arsenic a operator for a section operation company, was booked nether the NDPS Act, and was accused of driving a car arsenic a aviator conveyance to a motortruck that was caught carrying 1,177 kg of doda chura successful May.
“My hubby had nary transportation with opium. The reddish car helium was driving crossed a adjacent toll plaza doubly connected May 5, wrong fractional an hr of that truck’s crossing. There was nary betterment from his conveyance oregon immoderate different link,” Kunwar says.
Jokchand, a erstwhile Congress leader, says that specified cases enactment fearfulness successful radical who consciousness they could beryllium detained immoderate time, and that threats are besides made “just to settee scores”. “The section constabulary interaction everyone whose sanction pops up during an investigation. If a farmer’s sanction comes up, helium mostly chooses to wage a hefty sum alternatively than having his sanction successful a lawsuit and hazard losing his opium licence. Others wage the wealth due to the fact that they cognize they tin beryllium successful jailhouse for a agelong clip and the condemnation complaint is precocious successful these cases,” Jokchand explains, saying that the signifier of ‘settling’ is locally called khada tod (instant deal).
In Luhari colony of Ratlam’s Jaora, Ambaram Singh, a 68-year-old farmer, says that owed to the risks progressive with opium cultivation, farmers person to instrumentality assorted precautionary and information measures to debar immoderate ineligible troubles. “Once the harvest begins to grow, 2-3 of america slumber determination truthful that idiosyncratic does not bargain adjacent a azygous works oregon seed,” helium says, pointing to his tract wherever 2 women are working.
Piling up of cases
In 2024, the Mandsaur constabulary arrested 377 radical successful 146 NDPS Act cases. Until November 30, 2025, up to 448 radical person been arrested successful 163 cases. The constabulary denies the allegations of extortion, portion highlighting a crackdown connected smuggling rackets involving aggregate states. Nikhil Kumar Gandhi, Deputy Narcotics Commissioner, CBN Neemuch, besides denies charges of immoderate fake cases by his officers.
Mandsaur SP Meena says that Sohanlal’s lawsuit is not fake and helium did not admit to that successful the tribunal arsenic reported by assorted media outlets. “All I admitted to was immoderate procedural errors by immoderate unit who person been suspended. We person besides arrested the man, Chandra Prakash Patidar of Piplia Mandi, who sold him the opium, and a antheral named Vikas Chaudhary from Jodhpur, who had sent Sohanlal here. These men person 2 NDPS cases each against them,” Meena says. The procedural lapses see precocious FIR filing and not informing the section constabulary presumption aft detaining Sohanlal from their jurisdiction.
Another serviceman progressive with the probe cites grounds that Sohanlal visited Mandsaur 8 times successful the past period and a half. “We person gathered CCTV footage and quality intelligence. He did not spell to the temple but did sojourn astir 50 villages successful the region. Why would a pupil travel present unsocial truthful galore times and sojourn villages helium claims to person nary transportation with?” the serviceman says.
He adds that boys and men betwixt 16 and 22 are being employed by smugglers to transportation opium and doda chura. As per constabulary data, astatine slightest 26 men astir this age, including 1 minor, person been arrested by the constabulary of Malhargarh sub-division successful 2025. Many of them hail from Rajasthan.
Dilip Patidar, laminitis of the Malwa Kisan Sangathan farmers’ corporate and territory president of the Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, says, “People present are truthful frightened that if you inquire idiosyncratic to clasp your container connected the roadside for a infinitesimal and accidental that you person to usage the bathroom, they won’t bash it. They fearfulness that you could beryllium carrying opium and they could get caught.”
In Neemuch’s Kanawati sub-jail, retired of the 441 convicted and under-trial inmates, 291 are lodged successful cases nether the NDPS enactment arsenic of December 18, arsenic per information obtained from the jail.
A multi-State nexus
The constabulary and CBN officers from the portion accidental the large substance smuggled retired of the portion is doda chura, portion opium is sold successful smaller amounts. “A 10 are crippled with gum licence produces opium latex betwixt 8 and 12 kg. Some farmers lone merchantability 7-8 kg to the CBN. This is the required amount. They support the remaining magnitude to merchantability successful the achromatic market,” an serviceman says, requesting anonymity. The authorities complaint is ₹1,500-2,000 per kg of opium latex. The achromatic marketplace pays ₹1.5-2 lakh, helium adds.
Doda chura utilized to beryllium bought by the State’s excise section until 2016, erstwhile it was brought nether the purview of narcotics laws and banned by the Union government. Police officers and farmers accidental the main occupation began aft poppy straw was banned.
Officers explicate that the destination of astir of the doda chura smuggled retired of the portion is Punjab and Haryana, wherever it has been traditionally consumed arsenic a drink. “Most cases are linked to 4 States: this portion of M.P. wherever it’s bought, Punjab and Haryana wherever it is sold, and Rajasthan wherever astir rackets run from. Since this portion is adjacent to immoderate salient nationalist highways, transport trucks are 1 of the main carriers utilized successful smuggling,” the serviceman says, adding that owed to the crackdown connected trucks, smugglers person besides started utilizing smaller cars. Officers besides item assorted challenges successful tracking smugglers saying that they usage fake identities, virtual oregon planetary numbers, oregon adjacent pass done gaming apps.
Farm labourers moving successful an opium tract successful in Bahi colony of Mandsaur, M.P., wherever lancing of poppy seeds is nether way. | Photo Credit: A.M. Faruqui
Officers accidental section farmers get caught successful the mediate of smuggling and crackdown done lucrative offers from smugglers and extortion by constabulary personnel. “The doda chura they merchantability for ₹2-3 lakh (per quintal) is sold astatine overmuch higher rates later. The prices sprout up massively arsenic you determination up the smuggling concatenation for opium and poppy straw. The farmers hardly get immoderate stock of this, but extremity up getting caught successful the mess,” helium says.
One serviceman agrees that immoderate unit person been progressive successful “extorting” wealth from those whose names travel up successful the smuggling chain.
Gandhi says that the task of destroying the poppy straw does not autumn with the CBN. “We are presently moving connected a connection for the State Government to code this contented and instrumentality the work of disposal of poppy straw successful its control,” helium adds.
mehul.malpani@thehindu.co.in
Edited by Sunalini Mathew
