16 arrested, drugs worth over Rs 36 cr seized in Bengaluru: Minister Parameshwara

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Wednesday said the Bengaluru City Police have seized drugs worth over Rs 36 crore with the arrest of 16 people in recent operations. Among those arrested are four foreign nationals, eight from other states and four local residents, police said. Addressing a press conference here, Parameshwara said in one major operation, the Central Crime Branch, North East Division, North Division and Anti-Narcotics Wing together arrested 16 people. ''Drugs worth over Rs 36 crore have been seized and cases have been registered against all of them. This is the latest major development before us,'' he said. The home minister asserted that the objective is to curb narcotic substances at three levels -- supply, production and consumption. ''We are focusing on all three aspects, and the department is committed to suppressing this menace under all circumstances. Karnataka and Bengaluru must become drug-free; that is our core objective, and we are taking every possible measure towards that,'' he said. He stressed that the government of Karnataka has adopted a zero-tolerance policy towards drug trafficking and abuse. According to a Bengaluru police statement, this year so far, drugs worth over Rs 130 crore have been seized and 1,959 cases, including 256 on peddlers and 1,703 on consumers have been registered. So far, a total of 2,591 Indian nationals and 21 foreigners have been arrested under the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act, it said. In addition, Parameshwara said 401 foreign nationals were deported in 2025, while 427 people have been deported so far in 2026, including 286 Bangladesh nationals. These figures include those involved in drug peddling as well as those staying illegally despite visa expiry. The home minister also appreciated the system developed by the Bengaluru Police for crowd control, crowd management and transport management during IPL 2026. In June 2025, 11 people died and 33 injured following a stampede near the M Chinnaswamy cricket stadium here, where a large number of people had gathered to participate in the RCB IPL victory celebrations. ''An unfortunate incident happened in 2025, and that is why special attention was taken by the government with the recommendations of Justice John Michael D'Cunha's (report),'' he said. According to him, all those recommendations, short term and long term, have been taken care. ''All the short term suggestions were more or less completed. That is why we allowed the IPL 2026 and police did a wonderful job in taking care of the security aspect of it,'' he added.

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