Chennai: A day after the Narcotics Control Bureau Deputy Director Gyaneshwar Singh spoke about probing the political funding and film financing by Jaffer Sadiq, a suspected drug lord, the Tamil Nadu Law Minister S Regupathy on Sunday charged that the Centre was using the NCB to “defame and intimidate the DMK”.
Sadiq, who was earlier the DMK NRI Wing Chennai West unit office-bearer, is now in the custody of the NCB in connection with an allege international drug cartel.
On Sunday, Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi, in a press release issued through Raj Bhavan said, the recent interdictions of sizeable quantities of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and apprehension of members of international drug cartels in Tamil Nadu and other places by the central agencies had “confirmed the worst fears about prevalence of drugs in the state.”
Earlier in the day, the Leader of Opposition and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami handed over a memorandum to the Governor urging him to order “an independent and transparent enquiry” into the entire drug nexus and the resultant activities. The party also urged the Governor to call for a report on the financial activities between Sadiq and the DMK party. It sought a detailed report on the “nexus” Sadiq and “the DMK, Chief Minister, Chief Minister’s family and also the Director General of Police.”
Meanwhile, the Law Minister along with DMK MP P Wilson told journalists that the NCB officer Singh had briefed the media about the arrest of Sadiq and other details, “without completing investigation” only to gain political mileage for the BJP during election.
Wilson warned that the party would initiate legal and criminal proceedings against anyone who sought to unnecessarily link the party with Sadiq.
“What is the basis and where is the evidence? The media briefing, especially during the election time, has been done with the motive of defaming the DMK. We will initiate criminal and civil proceedings against anyone seeking to link the DMK or our leaders with the case without any basis and evidence,” Wilson said.
Asked about how a party post was given to a person with such a shady background, Mr Regupathy, the DMK had two crore primary members and it was impossible to check all of their backgrounds. However, the party had summarily dismissed Sadiq the moment his name was linked to the drug cartel.
