Bhubaneswar: A Chhattisgarh police team reached Bhubaneswar on Thursday to interrogate four ganja smugglers arrested by Odisha special task force (STF) last week.The accused — Durbasa Sahu (46), Subudhi Sahu (40), Arun Kumar Rana (34), and Prakash Khatua (35) of Boudh district — were wanted in two drug‑related cases registered in Balrampur, Chhattisgarh, in Dec 2025 and June 2026.Sources said the quartet also allegedly orchestrated an attack on Chhattisgarh police personnel during a raid in Boudh’s Kantamal area on Feb 26 this year. “A Balrampur police team had come to arrest an associate of racket kingpin Durbasa. While they were taking suspect Abhikesh Rana with them, locals attacked the team and helped him escape. Durbasa and his aides had instigated the mob. A case was registered at Kantamal police station,” an STF official said.Chhattisgarh police officers said they would seek remand of the four for further probe into the Balrampur cases. In those two cases, police had arrested five carriers and seized about 3,100 kg of cannabis. According to STF investigators, the contraband was supplied by Durbasa’s syndicate. “We took the accused on a day’s remand for questioning, We are pursuing leads to map the syndicate’s interstate operations, trace supply chains and financial linkages, and identify other persons involved,” said STF DIG Kanwar Vishal Singh, after a coordination meeting with the touring Balrampur police.The STF nabbed the four accused in Bhubaneswar on June 26 while following a clue of half‑torn Rs 10 note seized from another peddler. The note was being used as a secret identifier in drug trafficking. Officials described Durbasa as the kingpin who had long operated from the shadows. According to STF, Durbasa headed a network in Boudh, Kandhamal, and Sonepur districts, with extensions into Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and West Bengal.
