The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized a huge consignment of heroin – 2,988.22 kg with an estimated street value of Rs 2,000 crore – at Gujarat's Mundra port on 15 September.
An investigation is underway, and agencies reportedly conducted raids and searches in Ahmedabad, Delhi, and Chennai among others.
A senior Andhra Pradesh Police official on Monday, 20 September, said that the consignment was intended to reach Delhi and not Vijayawada, IANS reported.
Vijayawada Police Commissioner B Sreenivasulu's clarification came amid reports that a city-based firm is under probe by the DRI in connection with the drug haul.
The contraband was mixed with talc stone powder, and packed in two containers, IANS reported.
The consignment reportedly originated from Afghanistan, and was shipped to Gujarat from Iran's Bandar Abbas Port.
The GST number used for consignment allegedly belongs to a company based in Satyanarayanapuram and registered in Vijayawada, IANS reported.
On verification with the probing agencies, the Police Commissioner informed that Govindaraju Durga Purna Vaishali, a resident of Chennai, had taken GST registration in August 2020 on the concerned address.
Machavaram Sudhakar, a resident of Chennai, is the husband of Vaishali. The building is owned by Vaishali's mother Govindaraju Taraka.
"It is learnt that Vaishali has taken an import and export license (IEC Code) from Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) for export and import purpose. It is also learnt that both wife and husband (Sudhakar and Vaishali) have been residing in Chennai for the past many years."Vijayawada Police Commissioner B Sreenivasulu, as per IANS
He added, "The smuggled heroin in the guise of talcum powder that landed at Mundra Port is intended to reach Delhi, but not to Vijayawada as alleged in some sections of media. So far no activity except using the Vijayawada house address for obtaining above licenses has come to notice. However, further enquiries are being conducted."
(With inputs from IANS)
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