Kolkata: In a crackdown on recreational drug supply networks linked to the city’s nightlife circuit, the Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police and the narcotics cell of the detective department raided a hotel in central Kolkata and seized cocaine and MDMA from a private suite where a birthday party was under way. Six people were detained for questioning.Acting on specific intelligence about narcotics being consumed at a private gathering, the teams raided Hotel Aauris on Robinson Street, under Shakespeare Sarani Police Station.Investigators said the gathering was not a commercial rave party, as initially speculated, but a private birthday celebration where narcotics were allegedly being consumed.During the search, officers recovered around 5 grams of cocaine and nearly 1 gram of crushed MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy.Sources said cocaine in Kolkata’s illicit party circuit typically sells for Rs 10,000 to more than Rs 20,000 a gram, depending on purity, availability and the distribution network. A gram of MDMA is estimated to cost between Rs 6,000 and Rs 10,000.The six people present in the suite were detained to ascertain how the drugs were procured and brought into the hotel. No formal arrests had been made till Sunday evening, sources said.Investigators are examining CCTV footage from the hotel and verifying the guest list to identify the peddlers who allegedly supplied the drugs.TOI tried to get in touch with the hotel authorities but despite repeated calls and text messages to one of the proprietors there was no response.TOI even called the hotel reception to which an employee said there was no one on Sunday to comment on the issue and that the earliest they could connect to someone in authority would be Monday.
