Boxer Vijender Singh denies link to Rs 130 cr drug haul

Olympian Vijender Singh on Friday denied any connection with the recent Rs 130-crore drug haul in Punjab. Vijender called the rumours false and said, "I have nothing to do with these people. I do not know how my name has come up in this matter. I do not know these people. I was in Mumbai for some work and had left my car at NIS Patiala. Nothing was found in my car."

In a massive drug haul, the police recovered heroin worth Rs 130 crore from a flat in Zirakpur, Mohali. The police has alleged that Vijender's wife's car was found outside the Zirakpur flat and 10 kilograms of heroin was also recovered from another car. But it has not been confirmed if it was from the boxer's wife's car.

The police said that one person arrested on March 3, Anup Singh Kahlon, is linked to Vijender Singh and another boxer Ram Singh. The accused has alleged that he supplied small amounts of heroin to Vijender and Ram. Sources told CNN-IBN that they will be calling in the boxers for questioning. SSP Fatehgarh Sahab Hardyal Mann Singh says the investigations are on. "We have recovered 26 kilograms of heroin from two smugglers. This is worth Rs 130 crore."

Sources also added that the accused is allegedly part of a bigger international drug peddling racket. Reportedly Kahlon is a truck driver in Canada and is part of a drug network in Punjab.

Meanwhile, Vijender's coach Gurbaksh Sandhu has expressed shock at the news.

Vijender won a bronze medal at 2006 Asian Games in Doha, a bronze at 2008 Beijing Olympics and is the first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal. The boxer was also honoured with Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award and was 2009 top-ranked boxer in middle-weight category. Ram Singh won silver in Junior National Boxing Championship in 2002, bronze medal in Czech Republic Grand Prix in 2007, gold in AK Misra Senior Men Boxing Championship in 2009 and bronze in international meet in Kazakhstan in 2009.