Malayalam rapper Hirandas Murali, better known by his stage name Vedan, from Kerala, was arrested by Kochi's Hill Palace Police, along with eight others for possessing around 5 grams of cannabis during a raid at his Vyttila flat in Kochi on Monday. Reportedly, the group had gathered for a 'program discussion.' The police conducted the raid based on a tip-off.
According to a report in the New Indian Express, an officer said, "Acting on the tip-off, we arrived at the flat around 10 am and recovered the ganja during the search."
The officer shared that Vedan and his companions had returned on Monday morning after attending a programme.
During the questioning, the rapper confessed to drug use and the police also recovered Rs 1.5 lakh from the flat.
After the interrogation, Vedan will allegedly be booked as per the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
This comes after renowned Malayalam film directors, Khalid Rahman and Ashraf Hamza, along with one other, were arrested from their Kochi flat in the wee hours of Sunday after a raid by the Kerala Police excise team. The three were arrested for being in possession of hybrid ganja.
According to a report in Manorama Online, excise officials, based on a tip-off, raided the flat in Kochi around 2 am on Sunday and seized 1.6 gm of hybrid ganja from the trio. The third person has been identified as Shalif Mohammed, who is reportedly a close friend of the directors.
Vedan is best known for his work in the 2024 survival thriller Manjummel Boys, where he provided vocals for the hit song Kuthanthram featured in the film.
He also lent his vocals for Narabali, featured in the Martin Prakkat directorial Nayattu.
