Delhi and Gujarat Police seize 518 kg of cocaine worth $594 million in third massive drug bust in 2 weeks

In a joint operation, the Delhi Police and Gujarat Police carried out a major drug bust on Sunday, seizing 518 kilogrammes of cocaine in Ankleshwar, Gujarat. According to ANI, the drugs have an estimated street value of ₹5,000 crore ($594 million).

The drugs, weighing 518 kilogrammes, were reportedly linked to a company called Pharma Solution Services, and came from Avkar Drugs Limited.

Over the past two weeks, authorities have made significant drug busts in both Delhi and Gujarat. According to PTI, the total value of the seized drugs is estimated to be ₹13,000 crore (1.55 billion), which includes 1,289 kilogrammes of cocaine and 40 kilogrammes of premium-grade hydroponic marijuana sourced from Thailand.

On 10 October, the Special Cell of the Delhi Police confiscated 200 kilogrammes of cocaine from a rented shop in West Delhi’s Ramesh Nagar, according to a report from PTI. The drugs, valued at ₹2,000 crore ($238 million), were concealed in plastic snack packets labelled ‘Tasty Treat’ and ‘Chatpata Mixture.’ Authorities found 20-25 such packets stored in cartons within the small, narrow shop.

This seizure came shortly after another major bust in New Delhi on 2 October, during which over 500 kg of cocaine and 40 kg of hydroponic marijuana were recovered. The total street value of the drugs is estimated at ₹5,600 crore ($667 million), making it one of the largest drug operations in recent memory.

Police revealed that 15 kg of cocaine was recovered from the main accused, Tushar Goyal, along with his associates Himanshu and Aurangzeb. The remaining quantities of marijuana and cocaine were found stored in a warehouse.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has claimed that Tushar Goyal, the suspected leader of the drug cartel, has links to the Congress party, where he once served as the head of the Indian Youth Congress RTI (Right to Information) Cell.

(With inputs from agencies)