The issue of synthetic drug abuse has resurfaced at top educational institutions in the city. Two main suppliers, Badshah Khan and Faisal Khan, were arrested in the Dariapur area after earlier arrests of peddlers Matin Shaikh, also known as Khalu, and Shahnawaz Pathan, known as Anda, near IIM Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
A top SMC (State Monitoring Cell) official told Mirror that they acted on information from Shaikh and Anda’s interrogation. “We caught Badshah and his associate Faisal from their Dariapur hideout,” the official said. “The accused admitted that Matin and Anda were tasked with delivering 55 grams of Mephedrone worth Rs 5,50,300 to another person.”
This person reportedly serves as the key link to customers. “The customers are mostly students from prestigious educational institutions,” the official added. “We’ve now placed more informers near schools and colleges across Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar.”
“We have solid tips about drug supply to students and have mapped out a strategy to tackle this problem. We’re reaching out to these premier institutions to build awareness. Our team is also planning to run programmes in colleges directly,” said the senior police official.
Badshah and Faisal were produced in the Additional Chief Metro Court at GheeKanta. The court granted police a five-day custody period for further questioning.
“Early questioning uncovered that they sourced synthetic drugs from Mumbai. They then sold them mainly to students from some of our top educational institutions,” explained the SMC investigator.
Triple-layered network
According to SMC sleuths, Matin and Anda were merely couriers delivering a consignment to another suspect who distributes to students across prestigious colleges in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar.
“These networks work in three distinct layers. If one layer gets caught, law enforcement can’t easily move up the chain,” the investigator explained. “The delivery person doesn’t know who stands between the supplier and peddlers.”
Elite campus students falling prey
“Many students from reputed institutions are getting trapped in synthetic drug abuse,” a senior SMC official told Mirror. “This isn’t just about law enforcement. It’s a serious social problem,” added a top police official.
SMC targets campus drug networks
With this breakthrough, the agency has launched a full-scale crackdown on drug networks around educational campuses. Operations have stepped up, and sources hint that more names connected to student networks and specific campuses may soon come to light.
What parents should watch for
Synthetic drugs like MD are highly addictive and cause severe psychological and physical harm. Parents, teachers and students must stay alert.
Authorities have asked educational institutions to organize awareness sessions, form anti-drug committees, and encourage students to report any suspicious activity. The SMC has also urged the public to report drug-related information anonymously through helplines, assuring confidentiality and prompt action.