Drug bust: DRI has the power to attach assets of culprits

Hyderabad: The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Sub-stances Act mandates the forfeiture of property acquired by drug racketeers, and the proceeds are to be used for a national fund to fight drug abuse.

However, anti-narcotics agencies, particularly the police, have failed to invoke the provisions of the Act in most cases.

A DRI official said, “drug offences, unlike most other offences, are committed only with profit as the motive.”

“One of the strategies to fight drug trafficking is denying the traffickers the fruits of their labour,” he added.

The property of convicts, detainees and those arrested for crimes with a jail term of 10 years or more are to be recovered under the Act.

The properties of relatives and associates linked to drug peddlers also fall under the purview of the Act.

Advocate Surya Nara-yana, a specialist in NDPS cases, said, “Only in a few cases have the agencies exercised this option.”

The advocate said an official could issue an order seizing the properties and if that is not possible, to freeze them, a copy of the order would have to be sent to the competent authority within 48 hours, which in turn has to confirm the order within a period of 30 days.

“The competent authority issues a notice to the affected person. After considering their reply and other records, it can pass an order forfeiting the properties,” he said.

If the person is only arrested, the issue of notice and subsequent forfeiture will be done only after his conviction or after an order of preventive detention is issued.

“The burden of proving that the properties are not illegally acquired is on the affected person,”  Appeals against the orders have to be made to appellate tribunal, he said.