LUCKNOW: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Lucknow Zonal Unit, has secured the conviction of nine people in a 2021 Firozabad ganja seizure case, with an Additional District and Sessions Court sentencing them to rigorous imprisonment ranging from 10 to 20 years. The sentences were pronounced by the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Firozabad, Shyam Babu.The case dates back to November 4, 2021, when Shikohabad police in Firozabad seized 441 kg of ganja from a truck bearing registration number HR 38 X 9682. The contraband was concealed in a specially created cavity in the driver’s cabin of the vehicle. According to the NCB, the consignment had originated in Gajapati, Odisha, and was being transported to Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh.Truck driver Pankaj Sharma, a resident of Tilauthi in Hathras, and co-driver Rinku Sharma, a resident of Pawan Vihar in Agra, were arrested at the spot. The NCB subsequently took over the investigation and arrested seven more accused persons in connection with the trafficking network.During the investigation, the agency arrested Vipin Pandit alias Vipin Sharma of Vidhehpur, Mathura; Niraj Gupta of Ayodhyapuri, Aligarh; Yashpal Singh of Lodha, Aligarh; Neeraj Saini of Ballabhgarh, Haryana; Vivek of Tilauthi, Hathras; Shishupal of ADA Colony, Aligarh; and Neeraj Kumar alias Bittu of Surendra Nagar, Aligarh.The court sentenced Yashpal Singh to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹2 lakh. Vivek and Shishupal were each sentenced to 15 years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹2 lakh each. The remaining six convicts — Neeraj Saini, Vipin Pandit alias Vipin Sharma, Niraj Gupta, Neeraj Kumar alias Bittu, Rinku Sharma and Pankaj Sharma — were each sentenced to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹1 lakh. The total fines imposed on the nine convicts amount to ₹11 lakh.The NCB said the investigation also included a financial probe into the assets linked to the accused. As part of the financial investigation, assets and properties worth ₹32.12 lakh belonging to the convicts were traced and frozen by the competent authority in 2024. Proceedings under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PITNDPS) Act were also initiated against the accused, with orders passed in 2022 and 2023.The agency further said that the process for auctioning the seized truck is underway.The NCB described the conviction as a significant outcome of its efforts to dismantle drug-trafficking networks through investigation, financial scrutiny and effective prosecution. The agency said the action was in line with its broader objective of strengthening narcotics control and contributing towards a drug-free India.The NCB has urged citizens to share information regarding drug trafficking through the MANAS helpline at 1933. It said the identity of informers would be kept strictly confidential.
