MP alleges intelligence failure over Nanjangud drug racket

Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, Mysuru MP Mysuru-Kodagu MP Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar has accused the Congress government of a serious intelligence failure following the alleged busting of an inter-State drug racket operating under the guise of a banana plantation in Nanjangud by the Keralam Police.

In a statement here, Mr. Yaduveer said it was shocking that the racket operating on Karnataka soil was detected by the police of a neighbouring State rather than the Karnataka Police or the State intelligence wing. He said this was not an isolated incident, pointing out that Maharashtra Police and central investigating agencies had intervened in recent years to expose organised drug networks operating in Mysuru.

“Such incidents raised serious questions about the effectiveness of the State’s intelligence machinery,” he added. Questioning the government’s repeated claims of intensifying its crackdown on narcotics and strengthening police surveillance, he asked how an illegal operation allegedly conducted under the cover of agricultural activity could go unnoticed by the local police.

He alleged that the repeated involvement of police forces from other States and central agencies in detecting alleged criminal networks operating in Karnataka reflected serious lapses in law enforcement and intelligence gathering.

The Congress government should take moral responsibility for the failure, he demanded. Mr. Yaduveer also sought to know why the State intelligence wing had failed to detect the racket, what surveillance mechanisms were in place to identify organised drug networks and who would be held accountable for the alleged lapses.

Calling for a comprehensive investigation, he urged the government to uncover the entire network behind the racket, fix accountability for the alleged intelligence lapses, strengthen inter-State police coordination and take stringent action against all those involved.