Pic: Maheboob DaulaBallari: The Ballari Police on Friday detained alleged drug kingpin Maheboob Daula under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988 (PIT-NDPS), marking what officials described as a major crackdown on organised narcotics networks in North Karnataka.Daula, a resident of Rani Thota in Ballari, is accused of running an interstate drug trafficking network for nearly 2 decades. Police said cases were registered against him since 2015 across districts including Mysuru, Tumakura, Chitradurga and Vijayanagara, apart from areas within the Ballari Range, with alleged links extending into Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.Despite repeated arrests and prosecutions under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, he allegedly continued his activities, posing a serious threat to public order and youth.After reviewing his criminal history, police invoked Section 3(1) of the PIT-NDPS Act to order preventive detention — the 5th such instance against him.IGP Dr PS Harsha said the action followed an in-depth analysis of nearly 20 years of criminal records. Calling it the first detention under the PIT-NDPS Act in North Karnataka, police said stricter monitoring of his network and associates is under way.
