KOCHI: The city police on Friday carried out an overnight raid at the hostel of the Government Polytechnic College in Kalamassery and arrested three students, including an SFI leader, for possessing ganja.
The arrested persons are Akash M, 21, of Kulathupuzha, Kollam; Adithyan, 20, of Haripad, Alappuzha and Abhiraj P, 21, of Thodiyoor North, Kollam. Abhiraj is the SFI leader and Union General Secretary of the Polytechnic College. According to police, 1.909 kg of ganja was seized from Akash and 9.7 grams of ganja was recovered from Adithyan and Abhiraj. The search that started at 10.30 pm on Thursday concluded at around 1 am on Friday
Based on the tip-off, the District Anti-Narcotics Special Action Force (DANSAF) team, combined with Kalamassery police, searched the Periyar Men's Hostel rooms of the polytechnic college at around 10.45 am. "Akash was staying at the G11 room of the hostel from where he seized 1.909 kg ganja. The search at the F 39 room, where Adithyan and Abhiraj stayed, resulted in the seizure of 9.7 grams of ganja. We have arrested three accused persons after charging two separate cases under the NDPS Act. Some of the students fled from the place, seeing the police team. We are investigating them," a police official said.
Adithyan and Abhiraj were released on bail from the police station as the seized ganja was minimal. Akash will be produced before the court in the evening. However, KSU activists alleged that to ensure bail for Abhiraj, police have registered two separate cases. The classmates of Akash claimed that he was neither a drug abuser nor a peddler and raised suspicions that some person had placed the ganja packet in his room deliberately.
On this, the police officials said that separate cases were registered as ganja was recovered from two different rooms of the hostel. "But we will probe whether Adithyan and Abhiraj had any connection with the ganja seized from Akash. The investigation is currently in the preliminary stage. We will probe whether the ganja seized from Akash's room belonged to some other persons. The source of these contraband will also be checked," a police officer said.