Narcotics valued at Rs 85 crore were seized and six people, including a woman were arrested in two separate operations, the Delhi Police informed on Saturday.

According to an official, Special Cell of Delhi Police conducted two separate operations leading to the seizure of a total of 101.62 kg opium and 2 kg heroin, worth more than Rs 85 crore in international market, and Rs 7.5 lakh hawala money.

He said that six people, identified as— Lakhpat Singh (43), Suresh (24), Prakash Puri (39), all residents of Uttar Pradesh; Dal Chand (36), a resident of Uttrakhand; Taslima Begum (38), a resident of Assam; and Ravi Prakash (34), a resident of Delhi—were arrested during the two anti-drug raids.

Giving details, a senior official of the Delhi Police said that the first operation was conducted on April 23 following intel that two of the accused, Lakhpat and Suresh would arrive at the Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar around 10 am in their truck to supply opium to one of the contacts of another accused Dal Chand.

Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) H G S Dhaliwal, said that following the tip-off, a raid was conducted in which Lakhpat and Suresh were nabbed and 5.31 kg opium was recovered from the possession of Lakhpat and 96.31 kg opium concealed between 682 gunny bags containing coconuts, was recovered from the truck.

The officer said that the arrested men revealed further information about their cartel during interrogation and a team was dispatched to Kichha in Uttrakhand, where they arrested Dal Chand, adding that another key member of the drug cartel, Puri, was later arrested from Uttar Pradesh’s Barielly and Rs 7.5 lakh of black money was seized from his residence.

The top cop further informed that based on another piece of intel about an Assamese woman involved in drug trafficking who was procuring heroin and other narcotics from suppliers in northeastern states.

The intel informed that the woman would arrive at the Shakur Basti Railway Station to supply heroin to one Ravi.

Based on the information, a trap was laid and both the accused were arrested along with 2 kg of heroin, the senior officer said, adding that further investigation is underway.

Amid the ongoing row over BJP’s allegations of “irregularities” in the renovation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s official residence, conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar has written a letter to Delhi Lieutanant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena claiming that he paid for expensive furniture and decor for the AAP supremo’s government bungalow as payment for favors.

Chandrashekhar, who is currently lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail as the prime accused in a Rs 200 crore extortion case, while urging the Delhi L-G to order a probe into the renovation works at Kejriwal’s house, claimed in the letter that he paid for the high-end furniture and bedding for CM’s house which is currently under scrutiny.

The conman claimed that Arvind Kejriwal and AAP leader Satyendar Jain picked the furniture based on pictures he sent them on WhatsApp and video calls made to the two politicians.

Sukesh Chandrashekhar claimed that Kejriwal had paid a pretty penny for expensive house decor and also alleged that he himself paid for some premium decor items worth lakhs of rupees from top brands like Ralph Lauren and Visionaire, for the AAP leader’s home.

In his letter to the L-G, he further claimed: “Apart from these furniture he wanted silver crockery, which was given by a famous South Indian jeweller worth Rs 90 lakhs in exchange of a allotment, kickback in Karol Bagh project of the jeweller introduced by me. There were 15 thali plates and 20 silver glass, few idols and multiple bowls, spoons in all pure silver, delivered to the official residence.”

Renovation row

The BJP has alleged that Arvind Kejriwal had spent Rs 45 crore from the public exchequer on the “beautification” of his official residence.

Last week, Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena ought a detailed report from the Chief Secretary after taking cognizance of the claims of irregularities by the BJP.

As per reports, L-G Saxena has asked the AAP government in Delhi to submit all records pertaining to the renovation work at CM Kejriwal’s 6, Flagstaff Road residence and directed the Chief Secretary to examine the said records and submit a report within 15 days.

Earlier, an India Today report citing documents obtained from sources claimed that the said papers mentioned that a total of Rs 44.78 crores against a sanctioned amount of Rs 43.70 crores was spent on “addition/alternation” of Arvind Kejriwal’s government accommodation on 6, Flagstaff Road in Civil Lines.

It said the said amount was spent in six trenches between September 9, 2020 to June, 2022.

Citing the documents, the report claimed that the expenditure included Rs 11.30 crores on interior decoration, Rs 6.02 crores on stone and marble flooring, Rs one crore on interior consultancy, Rs 2.58 crores on electrical fittings and appliances, Rs 2.85 crores on fire fighting system, Rs 1.41 crores on wardrobe and accessories fitting, and Rs 1.1 crore on kitchen appliances.

The documents further revealed that Rs 8.11 crores out of the sanctioned Rs 9.99 crores was spent on the Chief Minister’s camp office at his official residence.

Amidst the backdrop a Supreme Court bench currently hearing petitions seeking legal validation of gay marriage, a survey backed by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has termed homosexuality a “disorder” which it claims will spread further if same-sex marriage is legalized.

According to the survey released by by Samwardhini Nyas, an affiliate of the women’s wing of the RSS, doctors and medical professionals unequivocally believe homosexuality to be a disorder which must not be allowed to spread.

A senior functionary of the Rashtra Sevika Samiti—the women’s wing of the RSS—claimed that the Samwardhini Nyas survey was based on on 318 responses collected across the country covering medical practitioners from eight different pathies of treatment from modern science to Ayurveda.

The functionary claimed that the in their response to the survey, almost 70 percent of the doctors and allied medical professionals classified homosexuality as a disorder while 83 percent of the respondents “confirmed transmission of sexual disease in homosexual relations.”

The Rashtra Sevika Samita affiliate said that as per the survey over 67 per cent of the doctors in their response to the  questionnaire felt that homosexual parents cannot raise their offspring properly.

The RSS-affiliate said that survey clearly demonstrates that legalizing same-sex marriages would create disorder in the society instead curing those afflicted by homosexuality and helping them become normal again.

The right-wing group also batted for counselling as a “better option” to “cure homosexuality-afflicted” people from a “psychological disorder.”

The survey recommended that public opinion must be taken into account before a decision is made on the demands seeking legal validation of gay marriages.

A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court comprising, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices S K Kaul, S Ravindra Bhat, P S Narasimha and Hima Kohli, is currently hearing a batch of pleas seeking legal validation of same-sex marriage in India. The hearing commenced on April 18.

As per the RSS-backed survey, over 57 percent of respondents did not favor the Supreme Court’s intervention in a sensitive social issue like homosexuality.