Habitual drug trafficker’s Rs 1.06 cr assets attached

In a major crackdown on drug trafficking, the police have attached property worth over Rs 1.06 crore belonging to a habitual offender Pawan Kumar, a resident of Arla Dehra village in Kangra district.

He was arrested with 26.10 grams of “chitta" (heroin) and booked under the NDPS Act on November 6, 2024. The offence falls under the category of crimes punishable with a minimum of 10 years’ imprisonment.

SP Shalini Agnihotri and Additional SP Aditi Singh said the Kangra police initiated a detailed financial investigation into the assets acquired by Pawan Kumar through drug trafficking. The probe revealed that he had made two houses, other immovable properties and gold and silver ornaments through illegal means, the police officials said.

Acting under Section 68(F) of the NDPS Act, the police froze the assets, preventing any sale, purchase or utilisation without prior approval from the Station House Officer or the competent authority of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act, 1976.

The police officials said that on June 24, 2025, the competent authority and the administrator of SAFEM and NDPSA, New Delhi, confirmed the attachment orders. The attached assets include properties valued at Rs 87.77 lakh and gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 18,36,000, totalling Rs 1.06 crore.

The SP said that Pawan Kumar was a repeat offender with a long history of drug-related cases. He had previously been booked under the NDPS Act in five separate cases, she added.

Last week, the Kangra police had confirmed the attachment of properties worth Rs 1.78 crore linked to illegal drug activities.

Himachal Tribune