Sandalwood drug racket: Probe extends to Kerala; Rijesh Ravindran reveals drug dealings in Bengaluru hotel

Meanwhile, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) has reportedly taken actress Ragini Dwivedi into custody after conducting a raid at her house in Bengaluru  

Bengaluru: As the Sandalwood drug racket gets uglier with each passing day, Rijesh Ravindran, co-accused in the case, was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau on September 3.

Muslim Youth League state general secretary PK Firoz had alleged that Bineesh Kodieyeri, son of CPI (M) Kerala state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, has close connections with the drug smuggling gang that was arrested in Bengaluru.

Bineesh has close ties with Muhammad Anoop and Rijesh Ravindran, who were arrested along with D Aniktha, in connection with the drug smuggling case.

According to reports, Bineesh Kodiyeri had invested in a hotel in Bengaluru and Rijesh has revealed that the drug deals would take place at the same hotel.

Meanwhile, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) has reportedly taken actress Ragini Dwivedi into custody after conducting a raid at her house in Bengaluru, in connection with the drug racket case. There are indications that more people may be arrested in connection with the case.

The Bangalore Central Crime Branch had yesterday recorded the arrest of a government official who was a friend of actress Ragini Dwivedi. Apart from him, some others are in the custody of the crime branch. The Central Bureau of Narcotics Control is also trying to find links to drug trafficking in metro cities across India.

The Bengaluru Narcotics Control Bureau has stated that it is investigating the Kerala connections of the accused in the drug case. Bengaluru NCB chief Amit Gawade told Asianet News that their investigation was not in collaboration with the Kochi Narcotics Control Bureau and that there was no evidence that Anoop Mohammad had anything to do with the accused in the gold smuggling case.

The officer said, “So far, four people have been arrested in connection with the drug case. Two and three accused Mohammad Anoop and Rijesh Raveendran are Malayalees. That is why their links in Kerala are being investigated.”

They have also received hints that they have connections in the film industry. This will also be investigated. However, no evidence has been found linking them to any of the accused in the gold smuggling case. Amit Gawade also said that their investigation was not in collaboration with the Kochi Narcotics Control Bureau. The remand report submitted to the NCB court also states that more people are likely to be arrested in the case.