Hyderabad: Several families residing in Mangalhat and surrounding localities where ganja is traded are facing a peculiar problem: Consumers knock on their doors at odd hours and demand ganja. If they resist or want to report to the police, they are threatened by local drug suppliers.
This is making it difficult for them to even step out of their house, they said.
"This is the wedding season. Marriages are performed at dawn, the reception and traditional functions are held late at night. Woman wear their jewellery and feel threatened by the presence of consumers who are smoking ganja,” said a local woman resident.
“Last month, when men from our families requested the ganja users to leave some space for women, they were attacked,” she said. “We cannot go to the police as the ganja mafia is highly influential.”
“The lanes are narrow. At night, the consumers park their vehicles in front of our doors and urinate. They knock on our doors and demand ganja,” said Hari Singh of Mangalhat.
Another women resident said the daily nightly activity was disturbing the children’s studies. Affirmed a school teacher: “We have four schools with over 1,900 students. The kids are good in studies but due to this illegal trade they are not able to focus.”
Narrating an incident, Balram of Machilikaman said, “Three days back, five drunk persons from the Old City came in an autorickshaw to our lane looking for ganja. When the seller told them that there was no stock, one of them threatened the seller with a dagger. After we raised an alarm, they fled.”
A police officer claimed they had arrested several suppliers and peddlers and had invoked the PD Act against some of them. “Some peddlers have left the business. We will take stern action not only against the suppliers and peddlers but also the consumers,” he said. He asked residents to approach the police if they are troubled by drug users or peddlers.
How it works:
- Jeera, Shivalnagar, Balram Galli have over 20 families involved in drug supply business.
- A ‘lady don’ along with 12 others is said to dominate the supply chain of drugs.
- The peddlers switch off or break the streetlights, ensuring the lanes are dark. They tilt the CCTV cameras upwards using long sticks and roads.
- They allegedly have a system that alerts them to the arrival of police patrols.
