Drug Supplier Disguised As Ascetic Caught After Evading Arrest For 3 Years In Rajasthan

Disguised as an 'ascetic', with black robes, Purna Ram, a known drug supplier from Rajasthan's Hanumangarh, has been caught by the police after evading arrest for three years.

Purna Ram Sharma, 40, was wanted by the police for three years. His name came up when the police busted a heroin racket in March 2023, and three people, Navin, Tarachand and Surendra, were caught with 115 gm of heroin worth Rs 46 lakh. During the investigation, his name came up as the main drug supplier who sold the accused heroin.

But as the police went to arrest him, a key figure in the drug supply racket, he went into hiding. Special teams were formed to catch him, but he managed to evade the police for years. Till he came to visit his sister in Haryana's Alinabad, and a tip off led the Hanumangarh police to Purna, who was carrying a reward of Rs 5,000 on his head

Police station inspector Subhash Kachchava of Hanumangarh town, who led the arrest, told NDTV, "Purna Ram was in the business of supplying drugs. He does not do drugs himself and is not an addict, but was a part of the supply chain and was probably procuring drugs from neighbouring Punjab to peddle in Rajasthan's Hanumangarh. He was hiding as an 'ascetic' or 'tantrik'. He claims he was repenting and had gone to do spiritual practices, but all this is hogwash; he disguised himself to evade arrest. There are 2 cases against him under the NDPS Act in Hanumangarh."

Purna Ram lived in a hut in Madhya Pradesh, close to the Ujjain temple. He also lived near the Kamakhya temple in Guwahati and the Tarapeeth temple in West Bengal, and also stayed near the Kaal Bhairav temple in Varanasi, temples known for occult practices.

Rajasthan's Hanumangarh and Ganganagar are on the border with Punjab; the areas have been reporting a spike in drug hauls.

In the past two months alone, heroin worth six crores was seized in Hanumangarh. Over 90 cases have been registered under the NDPS Act, and 113 people were arrested for drug-related offences.