Hyderabad Police arrest 5, including 78-year-old, for illegal possession of 38 kg ganja worth Rs 10 lakh
Aug 22, 2026
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], August 22 : The Special Crime Team of the Central Crime Station (CCS), Hyderabad City, in coordination with Gandhi Nagar Police, apprehended five persons for alleged illegal possession of dry ganja.
Based on credible information, the team apprehended the accused on Friday (August 21).
The accused were identified as Rajaram Swami Kannu Padaiyachi (78), Santosh Balaram Prajapathi (65), Vijayalaxmi Kaliyamurti Pellai (66), Silmina Kujur (36) and Sheela Devi (48). While three accused are natives of Tamil Nadu, two others are from Jharkhand but reside in Mumbai and Thane in Maharashtra.
Police recovered 38 kg of dry ganja worth Rs 10 lakh from their possession.
According to police, the accused are transporters of ganja from Araku in Visakhapatnam to Mumbai. They procured large quantities of dry ganja packed in brown-coloured parcel covers from Araku on instructions of an unknown source person, transported them to Hyderabad by bus and from there boarded another bus to Mumbai for delivery at designated locations.
Police said the source person was using the accused as transporters by taking advantage of their age, paying them a commission of Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 for each delivery. The accused also have a previous criminal history of ganja transportation.
Police said the accused concealed the parcels in their regular travel bags and boarded different buses to Hyderabad to avoid suspicion, taking advantage of their old age. Upon reaching Hyderabad, they stayed for about a day at different lodges before travelling to Mumbai.
The apprehension was made by Ch Sudhakar Rao, Inspector of Police, Crime Team and N Gourendar Goud, Sub-Inspector of Police, Crime Team, along with his team members, in coordination with Gandhi Nagar Police, under the guidance of S Chaitanya Kumar, IPS, Deputy Commissioner of Police, CCS, DD, Hyderabad.
Police have advised the public to remain vigilant and refrain from becoming involved in the illegal transportation, possession, sale or distribution of ganja and other narcotic substances.
