Escaped from Kashmere Gate, held from Ashram: How Delhi Police arrested Kolkata woman smuggling 12.5 kg cannabis via train

Cops said the contraband was confirmed to be ganja by a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team at the spot. (Representational image)

Delhi Police on Monday arrested a 38-year-old woman for allegedly transporting over 12 kilogram of cannabis that was hidden in a trolley bag from West Bengal via train.

PTI reported police as saying that the accused, Archana Manna, from Kolkata, was arrested from South Delhi's Ashram Flyover while she was travelling in an autorickshaw with her daughter and two grandchildren.

Cops informed that Manna was a part of an interstate drug supply network.

Initial investigation revealed that Manna had moved to Delhi in 2014 and been working as a domestic help.
After her husband died two decades ago she was allegedly lured into drug trafficking by acquaintances in Govind Puri, who offered her Rs 10,000 for each delivery.

Police said she was trained by the network in using encrypted apps and deleting call logs to avoid detection. Videos found on her phone showed her discussing the quality of ganja during purchase, they added.

They said that 12.55 kilogram of ganja, packed in 12 polythene packets and concealed in a trolley bag, was seized from her possession.

Cops said the contraband was confirmed to be ganja by a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team at the spot.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Harsh Indora said the operation followed specific intelligence received on June 16 about a woman transporting cannabis from Odisha and West Bengal to Delhi by train.

Police were deployed at Kashmere Gate railway station to monitor the suspect. The accused managed to slip out of the station amid the rush but was later traced to an autorickshaw heading towards Govind Puri.

She was intercepted at Ashram Flyover and the narcotics were seized after due legal procedures under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) Act.

The accused has been booked under the NDPS Act and further investigation into the supply chain, believed to operate across Odisha, West Bengal, and Delhi, is continuing.

(With agency inputs)